The first congestion pricing plan in the U.S. has begun, charging most drivers $9 a day to enter the lower half of Manhattan. The long-debated plan is projected to raise up to $800 million a year for the city's aging public transit system.

Boston has notoriously bad traffic, but does it have to be that way? Economists, planners, transit advocates, and politicians in Massachusetts are closely monitoring what’s happening in New York, now that congestion pricing has gone into effect.

See Newsday's coverage of MTA's controversial plan to charge a toll for vehicles traveling below 60th Street in Manhattan.