San Antonio ranks No. 21 in a recent report of the most traffic-heavy cities in the US. Other congested cities — like New York City — have tried charging drivers to use certain roads during peak travel times. But would congestion pricing work in San Antonio?
The stats
If we applied the early data from New York City’s congestion pricing to San Antonio, we’d have...
- $2.7 million raised daily. Over 300,000 vehicles took Loop 410 near Nacogdoches Road per day in 2022. If we applied the congestion toll most New Yorkers pay — $9 a day — to these vehicles, we’d be looking at over $2.7 million paid by San Antonians each day. In NYC, that money will go towards public transportation.
- $26.50 for an Uber to the airport. The average price of an Uber trip to San Antonio International Airport is currently $25. New Yorkers pay an extra $1.50 for Ubers driving through the congestion zone, so it would then cost $26.50 if we applied the same fee.
- 9 minutes and 4 seconds drive time. In some of the most congested areas of NYC, the MTA reported up to a 30% decrease in evening travel times. In San Antonio, the average evening rush hour drive time is 13 minutes and 23 seconds per six miles. Decrease that time by 30%; your new time is ~9 minutes and 4 seconds.
- 1,170 new bus riders. Weekday bus ridership is up 1.5% in NYC. VIA Metropolitan Transit saw ~78,000 riders per weekday in 2023. Increase that by 1.5%, and you will have 1,170 more bus riders — 79,170 in total.
But hold on
No two roads — or their traffic — are alike. Places like New York City are much more walkable and have robust public transportation systems. Besides, the real question is: What do San Antonians think?
We polled our readers on whether they thought congestion pricing would work in San Antonio, and here are the results:
- 79% said, “No way.”
- 19% said, “It’s complicated.”
- 2% said, “Absolutely.”
Our readers had other considerations, as well. Let’s dive into the big ones.
Public transportation
- “It makes sense in NYC where there are easy, affordable public transit options — not here.” — Reader Sarah D.
- “I would be supportive if public transportation was more reliable. Paying $18/day (to and from work) is $4,680 a year (minimum) that people need to support themselves and their families. It just doesn’t make sense, especially for a city that has a 17.6% poverty rate.” — Reader Emily M. E.
Cost
- “San Antonio NEEDS a toll road of some sort. Yeah its an expense for residents but the roads needs tons of work. Plus its good income for infrastructure.” — Reader Allison H.
- “I’m worried how it would affect lower income families who commute for work. Unlike NYC, there are not affordable and fast public transportation options. I would love to see San Antonio invest in more eco and people friendly public transportation.” — Reader Chloe M.
SATX just isn’t NYC
- “We are not a small piece of land with over 7 million people. it is not necessary.” — Reader Julissa S.
- “Maybe it would work temporarily on heavier traffic like special downtown events like fiesta week or at the akami.” — Reader Chris
- “Think it is wrong to limit access to a historic city with fees.” — Reader Deborah G.
Most readers mentioned public transportation in some way or another. What we can look forward to in terms of improving San Antonio’s public transit is VIA’s fully funded Advanced Rapid Transit project, which is expected to begin service late 2027.
