How Scammers Could Cheat NYC’s Congestion Pricing Tolls

Each year, scofflaw drivers in New York City cheat their way out of paying tolls, costing the region’s mass transit system millions in lost revenue. And already, some drivers are thinking about ways to avoid the new congestion pricing tolls that will apply to those who enter the busiest part of Manhattan.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which oversees the city’s subways and buses as well as two commuter rail lines, depends on tolls to fund its operating budget. They are paid at nine bridges and tunnels — some of which connect to the new tolling zone — and add up to about $2.4 billion each year, or about 13 percent of the M.T.A.’s budget. In 2022, the M.T.A. estimated that it had lost $46 million in revenue to scofflaws at its bridges and tunnels, about 2 percent of its toll earnings.

The M.T.A. began collecting new congestion tolls for drivers who enter Manhattan at or below 60th Street. The tolls are expected to generate $500 million annually for three years, before the authority raises rates and revenue projections. But the authority could miss out on some of that money because of drivers who forge, alter or obscure their license plates to avoid toll readers and traffic cameras, turning their vehicles into so-called ghost cars.

Some drivers use camera-proof screens and sprays, as well as stickers, tape and other objects. They also scrape letters off their plates or use temporary paper tags.

On social media, drivers have shared other ideas to avoid the new congestion pricing tolls illegally. One TikTok user posted a video that suggested avoiding cameras by cutting through a certain parking garage with an entrance on 60th Street and an exit on 61st Street. In a Reddit thread, users suggested covering license plates with bird feces and purchasing devices that conceal or block license plates at the press of a button.

Public officials have stepped up their fight to remove ghost cars from the city, seizing more than 20,000 ghost cars over the past three years.

In December, the Police Department and Sanitation Department announced that they had seized and impounded more than 7,500 such vehicles off the road in 2024. Michael Kemper, the M.T.A.’s chief security officer, said officials had arrested 700 people during crackdowns on toll evasions this year.

Besides toll evasion, police officials say ghost cars and other illegal vehicles are used to help carry out violent crimes, including shootings and robberies.