Congestion Pricing Crossing Credits Explained

In short: If you drive a car into the Congestion Relief Zone through one of four tolled tunnels, with E-ZPass, during the peak period, the MTA takes a crossing credit off your congestion toll. Today it is $3.00 for the Lincoln or Holland Tunnel and $1.50 for the Queens-Midtown or Hugh L. Carey Tunnel, with a $5.00 daily maximum (TBTA toll schedule, Phase 1, as of October 12, 2026). The credit grows in 2028 and 2031.

The credit is for vehicles paying the daily toll: a driver's own car, or a vehicle outside the per-trip plan. TLC trips under the per-trip charge plan don't get it: the passenger pays a flat $0.75 or $1.50 per trip whichever way you come in.

Credit amounts by phase and vehicle

The four conditions

A credit applies only when all four are true (MTA FAQ; MTA: About):

1. You pay with E-ZPass. Tolls by Mail gets no credit.
2. It is the peak period. Weekdays 5 a.m.–9 p.m., weekends 9 a.m.–9 p.m. "No crossing credits are offered overnight when the toll is reduced by 75% from the peak period toll."
3. You use one of the four tolled tunnels. The MTA calls the Lincoln, Holland, Queens-Midtown and Hugh L. Carey tunnels the zone's four "tolled entries". Entries over the East River bridges or across 60th Street earn no credit.
4. You actually pay the zone toll. Staying on the West Side Highway after the Lincoln or Holland Tunnel is not possible without local streets, so those drivers are charged and credited. From the Carey Tunnel, staying on West Street means no toll and no credit; exiting onto Trinity Place means a toll with a credit.

Why the difference between tunnels? The MTA says the amount depends on the vehicle type and "whether the tunnel is tolled in one or both directions". The Port Authority tunnels charge only when you enter New York; the MTA tunnels charge both ways.

Port Authority's statement

The Port Authority tells its E-ZPass customers the same thing: "Vehicles using a valid E-ZPass and entering the congestion zone during the peak period via the Lincoln Tunnel and Holland Tunnel get a credit from the MTA on their congestion pricing charge (up to $3 for passenger vehicles, up to $1.50 for motorcycles, up to $7.20 for small trucks and charter buses, and up to $12 for large trucks and tour buses)" (Port Authority). The credit comes from the MTA; your Port Authority tunnel toll does not change.

What a car really pays: examples

All examples: a car, Phase 1, rates as of October 12, 2026.

Tunnel tolls: MTA and Port Authority. Note that the Port Authority's peak hours (weekdays 6–10 a.m. and 4–8 p.m.) are not the same as the congestion toll's peak (5 a.m.–9 p.m.). So at 1 p.m. on a weekday you pay the Port Authority off-peak rate but the congestion peak rate, and you still get the credit.

How the credit changes in 2028 and 2031

The credit rises with the toll, so the net cost of a tunnel entry rises more slowly than the headline toll. For a car with E-ZPass at peak:

• Lincoln or Holland: $9 − $3 = $6 now; $12 − $4 = $8 in Phase 2 (2028–2030); $15 − $5 = $10 from 2031.
• Queens-Midtown or Carey: $9 − $1.50 = $7.50 now; $12 − $2 = $10 in Phase 2; $15 − $2.50 = $12.50 from 2031.

Those are congestion toll amounts only; the tunnel's own toll is on top and changes on its own schedule. The schedule also allowed credits, like the tolls, to move up or down by up to 10% for up to one year after tolling began. Full phase details: congestion pricing increases in 2028 and 2031.

Why TLC per-trip charges don't get credits

The toll schedule has two tables. The E-ZPass table for vehicles paying the entry charge includes the "Tunnel Crossing Credit" columns. The per-trip charge plan lines for "NYC TLC taxis, green cabs, for-hire vehicles" have only a per-trip amount: $0.75, or $1.50 for high-volume trips. There is no credit column for them (schedule).

In practice: on a taxi or Uber trip through the Lincoln Tunnel into Midtown, the passenger pays the tunnel toll (at the E-ZPass amount) and the per-trip congestion charge. Nobody gets a $3 credit, and you must not add one or subtract one by hand. If a TLC vehicle is outside the plan and billed the daily car toll, it is billed under the car rules; ask the MTA how credits apply to that account.

Step by step: making sure you get your credit (own car)

1. Get an E-ZPass and link your current plate. If the tag can't be read and your plate isn't on the account, the MTA says the owner gets a Tolls by Mail bill instead, with no credit.
2. Mount the tag where the instructions say. An unread tag can mean a plate charge.
3. Time it. Crossing at 9:30 p.m. on a weekday costs less overall even with no credit ($2.25 overnight).
4. Check the statement. NY E-ZPass: toll within 3 days, credit 2–4 days after (MTA FAQ).
5. Out-of-state tag? The MTA FAQ says you pay the zone's E-ZPass rate if your plate is on your account. But at MTA tunnels, tags not issued by the New York Customer Service Center pay the Tolls by Mail tunnel rate (MTA).

Mistakes that cost drivers money

• Thinking the credit applies at night. It doesn't.
• Paying by mail and expecting a credit. Mail gets none, and both tolls are higher.
• Adding or removing a "credit" on a TLC trip. The per-trip charge is flat.
• Expecting a credit for the Queensboro, Williamsburg, Manhattan or Brooklyn bridge. They are not among the MTA's four tolled entries, so there is no credit.

Definitions: crossing credit. Crossing pages: Lincoln Tunnel, Queens-Midtown Tunnel. Traffic data: MTA bridge and tunnel traffic. Own car: congestion pricing in your personal car. Trips: did congestion pricing reduce Uber trips?. Overview: congestion pricing for TLC drivers and the tolls hub.