Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that beginning today lower tolls on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge have taken effect for Staten Island residents enrolled in the E-ZPass resident discount program. Staten Island residents will now pay an effective toll rate of $5.50 for each westbound trip, and the rebates will be posted to eligible E-ZPass accounts for every prior crossing since April 1.

“The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is critically important for commuters on Staten Island, and today the State is delivering much needed toll relief to residents and business owners,” Governor Cuomo said. “This assistance will put money back into the pockets of Staten Islanders and will significantly help companies that rely on the Bridge to keep their businesses – and the Staten Island economy – thriving.”

The toll relief program was created by Governor Cuomo and the State Legislature in February in recognition of the vital role the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge serves in the life and economy of Staten Island and the New York metropolitan region. Implementing the toll relief required reprogramming E-ZPass computer systems, which was successfully completed this morning.

The toll relief package also reduces tolls by 20 percent for commercial vehicles that make more than ten trips over the bridge per month using E-ZPass tags from the same New York Customer Service Center (NYCSC) account. That program will be implemented by early summer, with rebates then applied retroactively to all eligible tolls paid on or after April 1.

In addition, the MTA believes the commercial truck discount may also encourage more commercial businesses to use E-ZPass and help improve traffic mobility throughout the region.

The toll relief for residents lowers the effective cost of crossing the bridge by rebating 50 cents of the $6.00 toll paid by Staten Island residents with three or more trips across the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in a month. For Staten Island residents who make one or two trips across the bridge in a month, an 86-cent rebate will be applied to the $6.36 toll. All tolls on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge are collected in the Staten Island-bound direction, so each toll paid effectively covers two trips across the bridge.

Staten Island residents already signed up for the E-ZPass resident discount plan at the NYCSC do not have to do anything to obtain these rebates, which will automatically be applied to their accounts. More than 91 percent of NYCSC E-ZPass accounts with Staten Island addresses are enrolled in the resident discount program. First-time private E-ZPass users with a valid Staten Island address and eligible vehicles must enroll in the plan to obtain the rebates by calling the E-ZPass NYCSC at 1-800-333-TOLL.

Owners of commercial vehicles do not have to sign up to obtain rebates. The rebate will be automatically given to any commercial vehicle making more than 10 trips per month across the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge using the same NYCSC E-ZPass account.

More information can be found at the MTA Bridges and Tunnels home page here or by calling the E-ZPass NYCSC. Motorists using an E-ZPass from the New York Customer Service Center also receive substantial discounts on the cash toll rate at the other eight MTA Bridges and Tunnels crossings, ranging from $2.56 to $1.75 per trip.

The current passenger car toll over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge for non-Staten Island residents is $10.66 with an E-ZPass issued by the NYCSC and $15 cash. The current base toll for trucks at the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is $19.24 with a NYCSC E-ZPass and $30 cash.

The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is only tolled in the Staten Island-bound direction in accordance with federal law; no toll is collected for drivers heading to Brooklyn. Built in 1964 with a span of 9,865 feet, the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is the longest suspension bridge in North America and carries approximately 183,000 vehicles on an average weekday. Almost 87 percent of drivers crossing the bridge use E-ZPass.

(YWN Desk – NYC)