Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and NYC Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) has reached a major congestion pricing-funded milestone to improve air quality in the Bronx with the replacement of 20 diesel-powered transport refrigeration units (TRUs) at the Hunts Point Produce Market with clean diesel or hybrid models. These new refrigeration units significantly improve air quality in the Bronx with major reductions in nitrogen oxide (NO) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) while ensuring that Hunts Point Market can continue to play an essential role supplying New Yorkers with the food their families rely on.
“Congestion pricing has been a once-in-a-lifetime success story, leading to cleaner air, better transit, and faster and safer traffic throughout the city,” Governor Hochul said. “We knew that to do this right, we had to bring real air quality improvements directly to parts of New York City that have been neglected for far too long. These new refrigeration units will be a game changer for Hunts Point market, with air quality improvements equivalent to removing thousands of truck trips on our roads every day, making the Bronx’s air cleaner and improving quality of life.”
MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, “Congestion pricing is here and it’s working — less traffic, cleaner air — in the Bronx as well as Midtown Manhattan. These new TRUs are just the first of many clean air investments to come paid for by tolling revenues.”
New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez said, “Governor Hochul is laser focused on improving the lives of Bronx residents, and today’s announcement builds upon the transformative investment the Governor and the Department of Transportation made with the $1.7 billion Hunts Point Access Improvement Project, which took 13,000 trucks off the local street network every day by providing a direct access route to the Market. This project was a game changer for the South Bronx, increasing housing and economic investments, improving access to the Bronx River while establishing new east-west connections to Starlight and Concrete Parks for residents and visitors to enjoy.”
New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn said, “Congestion pricing is an example of when we think big, we can deliver real results for New Yorkers: traffic is down, commutes are faster, and we at NYC DOT are working every day to make it easier to commute around the city without a car. In the Bronx, where residents have suffered from high pollution and asthma rates, congestion pricing is helping right historic wrongs. We’ve already replaced 20 high-polluting TRUs in Hunts Point — the equivalent of removing the fine particulate matter emissions from 6,600 truck trips on the Cross Bronx Expressway every day — and we look forward to more replacements to come.”
Representative Ritchie Torres said, “Hunts Point feeds New York City, and for too long, the people who live next to it have paid the price in their lungs. The Bronx has some of the worst asthma rates in the country, and dirty diesel trucks are a big reason why. These 20 new TRUs are the equivalent of taking 6,600 trucks off the Cross Bronx Expressway. That’s real relief for real people in the Bronx, and this is exactly the kind of investment we deserve.”
Replacing a single diesel-powered TRU, some of which are nearly 30 years old, avoids the particulate-matter emissions of 330 truck trips a day on the Cross Bronx Expressway. With 20 now replaced, thanks to funds from the Congestion Relief program, the particulate matter emissions avoided are equivalent to removing 6,600 trucks from the Cross Bronx Expressway. Collectively, this first batch of replacements will cut annual emissions of nitrogen oxide by 66 percent, particulate matter by 99.7 percent, hydrocarbons by 96.8 percent, carbon monoxide by 97.8 percent, and carbon dioxide by 15 percent.
The replacement of TRUs is outlined in the mitigation package of the Environmental Assessment for the congestion pricing program. NYC DOT has been accepting new TRUs on a rolling basis since December 2025, when the first unit was delivered. An additional 75 units are in the active pipeline for replacement this year. There is a total of $15 million allocated for this air quality improvement measure.
In 2025, over 27 million fewer vehicles entered the Congestion Relief Zone (CRZ), resulting in meaningful improvements in travel times, air quality and quality of life with less noise pollution and fewer pedestrian accidents. On any given day, over 73,000 fewer vehicles are entering the zone, an 11 percent reduction on average. Additionally, the possible increases in traffic through Environmental Justice Communities in the Bronx have not materialized.
The TRU Replacement Program is the first major mitigation investment supported by funding from congestion pricing. The MTA and its project sponsors are in the last stages of developing the Final Mitigation Plan required under the environmental review process, which will detail the specific locations for each mitigation measure and the proposed allocation funds. The Final Mitigation Plan will be released in the spring.
Approximately 70 percent of the funds allocated for mitigation measures in the category of place-based mitigation will be invested in the Bronx. In addition to TRUs, the remaining mitigation initiatives in progress, both place-based and regional, include:
- A Bronx Asthma Initiative ($20 million)
- Implementation of electric truck charging infrastructure ($20 million)
- Renovation of parks and greenspaces in EJ Communities ($25 million)
- Installation of roadside vegetation to improve near-road air quality ($10 million)
- Installation of air filtration units in NYC and Newark schools near highways ($10 million)
- Expansion of NYC Clean Trucks Program ($20 million)
- Expansion of NYC DOT Off-Hours Delivery Program ($5 million)
Today’s announcement builds upon Governor Hochul’s efforts to enhance the quality of life for Bronx residents. Last November, the Governor announced the completion of the third and final phase of the transformative $1.7 billion Hunts Point Access Improvement Project. Overseen by the New York State Department of Transportation, the six-year project now streamlines access to the Hunts Point Market, taking thousands of heavy commercial vehicles off the local street network every day, while connecting communities and providing new pedestrian and bicycle connections to Garrison, Starlight and Concrete Parks. This transformational project is having a ripple effect in the South Bronx, leading to more investments in housing, opening more greenspace throughout the Borough and improving access to the Bronx River.
