New York City's congestion pricing plan, set to take effect on January 5, has sparked significant debate. This initiative aims to reduce traffic, enhance air quality, and fund public transportation. However, it has drawn opposition from various sectors, particularly the food industry.

Congestion Pricing's Struggle with New York's Food Supply Chain

Impact on Food Distributors

Not all those based in the five boroughs are in favor of congestion pricing. The toll, which requires vehicles entering below 60th Street to pay $9 per day per car and up to $21.60 per entry for trucks, has led a coalition of over 100 food distributors, restaurateurs, and other businesses to urge Governor Kathy Hochul to exempt them. Margaret Magnarelli, vice president of marketing for Baldor, a major food purveyor leading the coalition, emphasizes 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," she says.New Yorkers already pay high prices for dining out due to rising ingredient costs, fair wages, and steep rents. Restaurants like Harlem's Contento and Carroll Gardens' Buttermilk Channel have closed recently due to these rising costs. Industry leaders warn that prices will rise further, further straining the industry and diners.All New York City restaurants rely on food distributors with warehouses in Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. These distributors handle over 60 percent of the city's produce, meat, and fish and must use trucks to transport these goods as they cannot be transported via public transit.Andrew Rigie, executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, states, "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. It's just a tax that suppliers will pass on to small businesses, forcing restaurants to absorb costs or raise prices."

Support for Reducing Congestion

Restaurateurs like Tom Colicchio, 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. However, they argue that 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.

Impact on Healthy Food Access

The coalition also argues that congestion pricing will hamper healthy food access, affecting "those at the greatest risk of chronic and diet-related disease."Governor Hochul's office disputes claims that congestion pricing will raise food costs, citing reduced tolls during overnight hours. Spokesperson Sam Spokony says, "This program will make deliveries easier and faster." 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 as the rules are more punishing for trucks than passenger cars. Owner Mark Solasz says, "The congestion tax — $14.90 per crossing — isn't charged once a day [as is the case with passenger cars and motorcycles] but every time a truck crosses into the zone. 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?"

Funding for Mass Transit

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 that congestion pricing will displace truck traffic to low-income neighborhoods already struggling with air quality issues. Nicole Ackerina, CEO of Fulton Fish Market, told Eater via email, "The program doesn't eliminate truck traffic — it shifts it from Manhattan to Environmental Justice areas like the South Bronx."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."