NJ residents get ready for traffic due to congestion pricing: 'Nightmare'

NEW JERSEY (PIX11) – New Jersey residents who live near the George Washington Bridge are bracing for increased traffic when congestion pricing takes effect Sunday.

New Jersey lawmakers expect drivers to use the George Washington Bridge instead of the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels, avoiding the Congestion Relief Zone.

Residents in Leonia and Fort Lee, NJ, said traffic is already a nightmare without congestion pricing. Matt Dine lives on Paulin Boulevard in Leonia, a popular detour to the George Washington Bridge. “This street especially is a big cut-through for people,” said Dine. 

Dine said traffic gets so bad on Sundays as people return to the city, that he often cannot get out of his driveway. “We have a sort of unspoken rule,” said Dine. “Don’t drive on Sundays.”

Nearly every day, Dine said drivers mistake his outdoor patio setup for a restaurant or ask to use his restroom.

“With the traffic, people just stop and ask for reservations, and we’re like, it’s just our house,” said Dine.

Leonia Mayor Bill Ziegler said the traffic can be dangerous.

“These vehicles, when the traffic gets really heavy, will interfere with the safe movement and quick movement of emergency response vehicles,” said Ziegler. “Our volunteer firefighters have literally - on occasion - have not been able to get out of their driveways to respond to the firehouse in order to get to the fire.”

In 2018, Leonia’s elected officials banned non-residential traffic on side streets. The local ordinance did not hold up in court.

Mayor Ziegler, who took office in 2024, said he and other mayors recently met with Google to discuss how navigation apps might avoid rerouting onto local roads.

“It gets to a point where it’s a public danger, and we want to avoid that,” said Ziegler.

Residents are bracing for a bad traffic situation to become worse.

“It’s an absolute nightmare,” said Vicki, a Fort Lee resident. “On the weekend, it takes about an hour and a half to cross the bridge because of all the people coming to Fort Lee from Leonia and neighboring towns.”

“It’s really bad,” said Tatiana Zuniga, who works in Fort Lee. “It’s bad. There’s a lot of traffic. And a lot of times, even the detours [have traffic]. It’s traffic everywhere.”