Congestion Pricing Boosts Emergency Response Times in New York, Report Suggests

A recent report suggests that New York City’s congestion pricing policy has had a positive impact on the speed of emergency medical services (EMS) response times within Manhattan. The analysis, published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, indicates that a reduction in vehicle traffic following the implementation of congestion pricing has led to faster ambulance arrivals.

Reported Benefits

According to the analysis, ambulance response times decreased by an average of 63 to 70 seconds, a reduction of approximately 6 percent. This improvement is attributed to a significant drop in the number of vehicles within the congestion zone. Passenger vehicle counts reportedly fell by about 21 percent, and truck traffic by 18 percent, near the 59th Street boundary.

The authors of the working paper, “Congestion Pricing and Emergency Medical Service Response: Evidence from New York City,” stated that these traffic reductions translated into measurable improvements in EMS performance. While overall vehicle speeds within the central business district had already improved by 10 to 15 percent, this report is the first to deeply analyze emergency response times specifically in relation to patient pickup and hospital sites within the congestion zone.

The report also addresses a claim by some opponents of congestion pricing that a change in FDNY policy in March 2025, which directed ambulances to transport patients to the closest hospital rather than a preferred one, was responsible for any observed response time improvements. The authors contend that after accounting for this policy change, the evidence still points to congestion pricing delivering tangible emergency response benefits that may not have been fully captured in previous cost-benefit analyses.

Historical Context and Expert Opinions

Prior FDNY commissioners have long suggested that traffic congestion caused by private vehicles significantly slows down emergency vehicles. Removing some of these vehicles, they argued, would improve ambulance flow. Advocates for congestion pricing have welcomed the report’s findings, seeing them as confirmation of potential benefits.

“Gridlock” Sam Schwartz, a former DOT official, commented that fewer vehicles entering the congestion zone naturally means less congestion and fewer delays for emergency responders. He emphasized that even a one-minute saving in travel time can be lifesaving, citing the rapid death of brain cells during a stroke or the reduction in survival rates during cardiac arrest with even minor delays.

The report also highlighted other documented benefits of congestion pricing, including reductions in crashes, improved air quality, a better business climate, faster bus services, and increased revenue for public transit. It also noted an increase in pedestrian and bicycle traffic, suggesting a modal shift away from driving.

Costs of Congestion

The report underscored the significant cost of traffic congestion to emergency vehicle movement. It estimated that congestion adds between $95 million and $285 million annually in extra costs to emergency medical services in California alone, not including delays for police and private ambulances. The authors suggest that EMS performance should be considered a key welfare channel alongside more commonly studied outcomes like commuter travel time, accident rates, and air quality.

FDNY Disput es Findings

However, the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) has disputed the report’s conclusions. In a statement following the initial publication of the story, the FDNY provided a contrasting view. They stated that while fire response times to all emergencies within the Central Business District (CBD) decreased by an average of one second when comparing 2025 to 2024, ambulance response times to life-threatening medical emergencies actually increased.

According to the FDNY, ambulance response times to critical medical emergencies rose by 57 seconds in the CBD, averaging 9 minutes and 21 seconds in 2025, with increases observed across the entire city. The FDNY attributes these increases to staffing and call volume pressures, rather than congestion pricing. They noted that fire operations response times remained relatively flat, indicating no evidence that congestion pricing impacted those specific responses.

Key Facts

The divergence in findings between the academic report and the FDNY highlights the complexity of analyzing the real-world impacts of major policy changes. While the NBER report suggests clear benefits for emergency response due to reduced traffic, the FDNY points to operational pressures as the primary drivers of recent response time trends. The impact of congestion pricing on emergency services remains a subject of ongoing scrutiny and data analysis.

Source: Streetsblog NYC – https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2026/07/07/report-shows-yet-another-benefit-to-congestion-pricing-faster-emergency-response-times