As far as I can remember, the last time congestion pricing was a high profile issue in Philadelphia was when a certain candidate for mayor floated the Bloomberg-esque idea of charging drivers to drive in city’s central core.  At the time, Fattah’s plan (or his suggestion that we “explore” the idea) was criticized as missing the mark since the problem in Philadelphia is less with driving in Philadelphia than getting to Philadelphia.

Try this little experiment at home (or in your car).  Pay close attention to “traffic and transit” on the two’s and count how many times traffic problems occur on any road with “I” in front of it, “expressway or freeway” after it or the numbers 4, 2 and 2 in it.   Compare that to the number of times the traffic reporter finds it necessary to mention a delay in Center City.  The fact is, most mornings, after cars exit the highways and disburse into the street grid, they pretty quickly find their way to their various parking lots and garages and sit there for the day, leaving Center City’s streets pretty free and clear.  As a bike and occasional bus rider, I get a pretty good view of streets during the morning rush and they seem clear to me.

So congestion pricing in the form of a surcharge to enter Philadelphia would be a burdensome charge that wouldn’t solve the real problem.

But congestion pricing that would charge tolls of varying price levels depending on time of day and amount of traffic?  That seems to have merit.

A couple days ago, Eric A. Morris contributed a guest post to the New York Times’ awesome “Freakanomics” blog and explained, in the clearest terms yet, how congestion pricing (aka, “value pricing” or “variable tolling”) works and the economic theory behind it.  In doing so, he attempts to answer the basic question of “why should I pay for something that I get for free now?”

The answer depends a little on knowing what an externality is - basically the cost of an action or product that’s not represented in a price on a price tag.  As Morris puts it:

To consider it another way, delay is an externality imposed by drivers on their peers. By driving onto a busy road and contributing to congestion, drivers slow the speeds of others — but they never have to pay for it, at least not directly. In the end, of course, everybody pays, because as we impose congestion on others, others impose it on us. This degenerates into a game that nobody can win.

Markets work best when externalities are internalized: i.e., you pay for the hassle you inflict on others.

(As an aside, there can be positive externalities as well.  When I ride my bike instead of driving, I’m making it easier for others to drive and emitting fewer pollutants.  You can make the check out to “Dan Pohlig.”)

Of course, as Morris explains, there is plenty of perfectly understandable political opposition to such a move, though ultimately that’s because not everyone understands the benefits of it or the costs of the status quo.

Morris also points out that some parts of the country have already begun testing this out and the technology is pretty darn cool:

The best solution is to vary the tolls in real time based on an analysis of current traffic conditions. Pilot toll projects on roads (like the I-394 in Minnesota and the I-15 in Southern California) use sensors embedded in the pavement to monitor the number and speeds of vehicles on the facility.

A simple computer program then determines the number of cars that should be allowed in. The computer then calculates the level of toll that will attract that number of cars — and no more. Prices are then updated every few minutes on electronic message signs. Hi-tech transponders and antenna arrays make waiting at toll booths a thing of the past.

So what does this mean for Philadelphia?

It really gets down to how much is your time and, really, your public health worth?  Can you change your hours at work to avoid rush hour and therefore drive the Schuylkill Expressway at a time when tolls are cheaper?  Perhaps you can take an alternate route which, while it may require stopping at red lights, keeps you moving a constant speed.  You may even find that, suddenly, taking the train is a much more attractive option.

Again, this is one case in which my perspective is a bit skewed since I’m not a rush hour driver coming from the mostly highway dependent areas of Southeastern PA and South Jersey.  So I’m looking for anyone who uses the Schuylkill Expressway, Route 422, I-95, the “42 Freeway to Route 55,” Route 309 or any of those routes that I hear about every morning on my shower radio.  Since traffic heading out of the city to suburban employment centers seems to be just as bad some days, this question is open to city and suburban residents alike.   It’s a truly regional issue and it would require state action (actually two states) but the City could take leadership role in advocating for such a change.

What is your opinion on congestion pricing?  How much is your time worth?  Can you change your routine to save on the cost of the tolls?  Give Morris’s post a read and tell me what you think.  While the Philadelphia region seems to have less trouble with congestion than some other big cities, there is still room for improvement as anyone who has ever crawled along Route 422 will tell you.

Some of you might have the following questions, rhetorically asked by Morris:

But is this fair? Haven’t we already paid for these roads with our tax dollars? Won’t the wealthy buy their way out of congestion, while the rest of us are stuck? And won’t conditions in the free lanes deteriorate as they are packed with all the drivers who have fled the toll lanes?

Morris answered those concerns earlier today.