To the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Governor Kathy Hochul, New York elected officials, and relevant city and state transportation authorities:

We, the undersigned parents, guardians, and community members, respectfully request that private school buses transporting New York City students to and from school be exempt from the Manhattan Congestion Relief Zone toll when they are performing regular student transportation services.

Under the current Congestion Relief Zone rules, school buses contracted with the New York City Department of Education (DOE) are exempt from the toll. We support that exemption. School buses exist to transport children safely and efficiently, reduce the number of individual car trips, and help families access education. Those same public-interest reasons apply equally to private buses that families must use because DOE yellow bus service is unavailable to them.

As an example at NEST+M, a citywide public school on the Lower East Side, DOE yellow bus service is limited to eligible K–6 students living in Manhattan below 93rd Street on the East Side or below 59th Street on the West Side. As a result, families living outside of this zone do not have access to DOE yellow bus service, even though their children attend the same public school and must travel into the same part of Manhattan every school day.

For these families, private school bus service is not a luxury. It is a practical necessity. Many children are too young to commute independently by subway or public bus. Many parents cannot personally transport their children each morning and afternoon because of work obligations, caregiving responsibilities, or distance from school. A shared private school bus is often the safest, most efficient, and least congesting way to get students to school.

Applying the congestion toll to these buses, often creates an unfair and unintended burden on families. Private school buses serving students may need to enter the Congestion Relief Zone multiple times each day for morning drop-off, afternoon pickup, and route logistics. Those costs are passed directly to parents, making school transportation significantly more expensive and, for some families, prohibitive. 

For some families, even a modest monthly increase can affect whether they can continue using shared bus service. School transportation costs compete with rent, food, childcare, after-school care, medical expenses, and other basic household obligations. When transportation becomes too expensive, families may be forced into less safe, less reliable, or less efficient alternatives.

This outcome is inconsistent with the goals of congestion pricing. A school bus carrying many children reduces the number of private cars entering Manhattan. Penalizing that bus may push some families toward individual car trips, ride-shares, or less reliable arrangements, which could increase congestion rather than reduce it. Exempting student transportation buses would support the program’s stated environmental and traffic-reduction goals while protecting access to education.

We therefore ask that the existing bus exemption be expanded or clarified to include private school buses that meet reasonable criteria, such as:

1. The bus is used primarily to transport students to and from school;
2. The bus operates on a regular school-day route or schedule;
3. The bus is registered, insured, and operated by a licensed school transportation provider;
4. The school served is located inside the Congestion Relief Zone or requires entry into the zone for student drop-off or pickup; and
5. The exemption applies only while the bus is providing student transportation service.

This requested exemption is narrow, practical, and consistent with existing policy. It would not create a broad loophole for general private vehicles. It would simply recognize that school buses transporting school students serve the same public purpose whether the bus is contracted directly by the DOE or paid for by families because DOE service is unavailable.

Families should not be financially penalized because their children attend school and live outside the limited DOE yellow bus eligibility area. Students who rely on shared school transportation should be treated equitably, and parents should not be forced to absorb repeated congestion toll costs simply to get their children to school safely. We respectfully urge the MTA and relevant decision-makers to extend the Congestion Relief Zone toll exemption to private school buses providing regular student transportation, including buses serving NEST+m families and similarly situated school communities across New York City. Thank you!