Congestion pricing sparks outcry from NYC food businesses
by Melissa McCart and Andrea Strong Dec 16, 2024, 4:57pm EST
The New Jersey entrance to the Holland Tunnel. Getty Images
Not everyone based in the five boroughs is for congestion pricing, designed to reduce traffic, improve air quality, and fund public transportation: The toll that starts January 5 will require vehicles entering below 60th Street to pay $9 per day per car, and up to $21.60 per entry, in the case of trucks. In response to the impending deadline, a coalition of over 100 food distributors, restaurateurs, trade associations, wholesale markets, food banks, and small businesses joined together to urge Gov. Kathy Hochul to exempt food and beverage distributors based within the five boroughs.
Their biggest argument is that the plan will raise prices throughout the supply chain. “If you eat food in New York City” at restaurants, grocery stores, or food pantries, “the cost is going to go up,” says Margaret Magnarelli, vice president of marketing for Baldor, a major food purveyor that’s leading the coalition. Baldor’s intention is to try to absorb as much as they can, Magnarelli says, but since the multiple tolls per day will hit every truck across the distribution chain, the cost of food in NYC is going to go up.
New Yorkers already pay high prices for dining out, driven by rising ingredient costs, fair wages, and steep rents. Restaurants like Harlem’s Contento and Carroll Gardens’ Buttermilk Channel have recently closed due to rising costs, they say. Industry leaders warn prices will rise further, dealing another blow to the industry and diners.
All New York City restaurants rely on food distributors with warehouses in Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. These distributors, such as those at the Hunts Point markets, handle over 60 percent of the city’s produce, meat, and fish — food that cannot be transported via public transit and must come in by truck.
“A restaurant’s fish order isn’t taking the 6 train into the congestion zone to avoid the fee, and their broccoli isn’t hopping on the 2 train either,” said Andrew Rigie, executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance. “It’s just a tax that suppliers will pass on to small businesses, forcing restaurants to absorb costs or raise prices.”
Restaurateurs like Tom Colicchio as well as Sean Feeney (Lilia, Misi), and food distributors like Chefs’ Warehouse and Fulton Fish Market, which supplies nearly half the city’s seafood, support reducing congestion and improving air quality, but argue the current plan unfairly burdens food businesses.
“We are New Yorkers serving New York, collectively employing tens of thousands of local residents and contributing significantly to our city’s economy,” the coalition states.
The coalition also argues that congestion pricing will hamper healthy food access, impacting “those at the greatest risk of chronic and diet-related disease.”
Gov. Hochul’s office disputes claims that congestion pricing will raise food costs, citing reduced tolls during overnight hours. “This program will make deliveries easier and faster,” said spokesperson Sam Spokony. Overnight tolls will range from $2.25 to $5.40, offering a 75 percent discount for businesses making overnight deliveries.
Critics counter that businesses like Master Purveyors in Hunts Point, which operates 14 trucks crossing below 60th Street daily, will face significant costs in part because the rules are more punishing for trucks than passenger cars. “The congestion tax — $14.90 per crossing — isn’t charged once a day [as is the case with passenger cars and motorcycles, a spokesperson confirmed] but every time a truck crosses into the zone,” said owner Mark Solasz. “The cost will be passed to restaurants and, ultimately, consumers. What about the bodega owner making $12 sandwiches? Where’s the room to raise prices to $15?”
The plan is expected to fund $15 billion in mass transit improvements, including the Second Avenue subway extension, better subway service, and air quality initiatives. Measures include electric truck charging infrastructure, air filtration units in schools near highways, and expanded greenspace.
However, some argue congestion pricing will displace truck traffic to low-income neighborhoods already struggling with air quality issues. “The program doesn’t eliminate truck traffic — it shifts it from Manhattan to Environmental Justice areas like the South Bronx,” Nicole Ackerina, CEO of Fulton Fish Market, told Eater via email.
In terms of funding the MTA, critics also point to the existing metropolitan commuter transportation mobility tax (MCTMT), which they say already charges trucks to support the MTA. “New York City’s food and beverage distributors find themselves doubly penalized for providing a vital service to our city,” the coalition argues.
Magnarelli from Baldor says her company already pays around six-figures a year for that tax. The coalition points to a hypocrisy of treating food distributors as city-based businesses for the MCTMT, but not for congestion pricing. “We are New Yorkers serving New York,” the coalition letter states.
“This is another example of Swiss cheese legislation,” said Jeffrey Bank, owner of the Alicart Restaurant Group that includes Carmine’s. “New York City policies have been brutal for small businesses. It’s almost impossible to plan.”
Fulton Fish Market’s Ackerina called the timing particularly cruel for an industry just rebounding from the COVID pandemic. “This program is a cash grab by the MTA, with limited environmental benefits. It will directly impact retailers, restaurants, and the tourism industry,” she said.
“No one in the food world supports this,” Ackerina added. “Wholesalers, distributors, retailers, restaurant owners, chefs, fishmongers, butchers, and farmers all understand the negative impact on the city’s food distribution and restaurant industries.”
Source (Archive)
