NYC DOT to Provide New Incentives to Reduce Truck Deliveries During Busiest Hours and Fight Congestion

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IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 24, 2024
Contact: (212) 839-4850, [email protected]

NYC DOT to Provide New Incentives to Reduce Truck Deliveries During Busiest Hours and Fight Congestion

Agency to distribute $6 million to support businesses in shifting deliveries away from peak daytime hours

NYC DOT aims to shift 62,000 daily trucks to off-hour deliveries by 2040, making our streets safer and more sustainable

NEW YORK - New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez today announced new incentives to help reduce truck deliveries during the busiest hours of the day to improve traffic safety, protect the environment, and combat daytime congestion and double-parking. The agency will allocate $6 million to incentivize businesses receiving deliveries overnight. NYC DOT's Off-Hour Delivery program (OHD) will provide financial incentives for businesses to shift deliveries to off-peak hours, between 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. Excessive truck traffic during peak daytime hours contributes to congestion, increased carbon emissions, and greater safety risks to pedestrians, cyclists, and others when the streets are busier. The funding, allocated through the US DOT's Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) program, is part of the agency's larger effort to rethink how the city manages deliveries and better meet the demands of e-commerce.

"90% of everything in our city-- our food and drink, our clothing and paper towels-- comes in by truck. To decrease congestion on the roads, we have to get a handle on our deliveries," said Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi. "While we work to route deliveries into lower-emissions vehicles, we can make immediate inroads by spreading them out across the day-- ifwe can encourage businesses to be open to pick them up. This program will go a long way towards helping businesses help our city, decreasing emissions, improving our air quality, and keeping our thoroughfares moving. This is a real win for New York."

"New Yorkers are receiving more deliveries than ever before, and we are making them cleaner, safer, and more efficient," said NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez. "This incentive program will support local businesses and benefit all New Yorkers by reducing the number of delivery trucks on our roads during busy daytime hours."

The Off-Hour Deliveries incentives will fund tools and strategies to make overnight deliveries feasible for businesses. This includes the installation of low-noise equipment for delivery vehicles (such as newer hand pallet trucks and backup alarms), building security retrofits to enable unattended deliveries, and safety equipment such as security cameras. Participating businesses will receive one-time payments. The incentives program specifically aims to help smaller businesses that face financial barriers to transitioning to off-hour deliveries, though the program will be open to businesses of all sizes. NYC DOT will also encourage participants to consider sustainable last-mile delivery options, such as electric vehicles and cargo bikes. The incentive program will be managed by Arcadis, which will develop, administer, and monitor its implementation.

Roughly 90% of goods are moved through New York City by truck-and businesses often receive their deliveries during the middle of the day when streets are congested and demand for space at the curb is at its highest. Shifting commercial deliveries to the evening and overnight hours can help reduce traffic while also cutting costs for shippers. NYC DOT made its Off-Hour Deliveries pilot program permanent in 2010 and has used it to provide technical assistance to freight receivers and shippers to help them shift deliveries to off-peak hours. To date, the agency has enrolled 27 businesses with close to 1,120 locations receiving off-hour deliveries. As outlined within the Delivering Green plan, NYC DOT aims to reach 5,000 OHD locations by 2040, shifting an estimated 62,000 trucks away from peak hours. NYC DOT aims to achieve this goal through the $6 million incentive program announced today and an additional $5 million committed to the NYC OHD program through the Central Business District Tolling Program (CBDTP).

The OHD program includes businesses that receive large amounts of goods into the five boroughs, like Just Salad, ABI (Anheuser Busch-Inbev), Wegmans, Odeko, and Whole Foods Market.

Increasing freight efficiency with an expanded OHD program promotes sustainable business practices with multiple benefits - from the reduction of daytime roadway congestion and double parking in active bus lanes to advancing the City's Vision Zero goals with fewer truck-pedestrian conflicts.

BUSINESS OUTREACH AND DELIVERY MANAGEMENT

This spring, NYC DOT will host two information sessions with businesses to help tailor the incentives program to businesses' needs.

Webinars will be held virtually on June 3 and June 10. Interested businesses can fill out the form on our Get Started page.

The Off-Hour Deliveries incentive program is part of NYC DOT's efforts to reimagine freight delivery in New York City, restructure freight distribution, and create a sustainable last-mile delivery system for getting goods where they need to go safely and efficiently. Earlier this month, NYC DOT launched LockerNYC to combat package theft and reduce the negative environmental and safety impacts of truck deliveries. In March, the agency authorized the use of e-cargo bikes on city streets to make deliveries safer and more sustainable. The agency is also working to install delivery "microhubs," where trucks can safely offload to smaller, greener delivery modes like cargo bikes, handcarts, and electric vans. Additionally, through the Blue Highways program in coordination with EDC, the city is working to reactivate marine infrastructure helping to shift deliveries from larger trucks to our waterways.

"Embracing off-peak deliveries isn't just about business - it's about prioritizing safety, sustainability, and efficiency for all New Yorkers. I encourage Manhattan businesses to lead the way by enrolling in this opportunity to decrease congestion, emissions, and collisions," said Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine. "The Off-Hour Deliveries program will help reimagine freight delivery across the city."

"Off-Hour Delivery incentives should help to reduce traffic at peak hours by incentivizing receivers to demand their freight when competition for street space lowers. Parking will be easier, the need to idle will be reduced, delivery costs will be reduced, and truck utilization will improve," said Zach Miller, director of Metro Region Operations at the Trucking Association of New York. "In addition, professional truck drivers, who operate under federal hours-of-service regulations, should have a smoother work schedule. It's a win-win program. An example of the kind of support the trucking industry needs to improve efficiency while still ensuring New Yorkers get their goods."

"Today's announcement from the New York City Department of Transportation marks a pivotal step towards a more efficient and sustainable future for businesses across New York City, including the great borough of Queens," said Tom Grech, President and CEO of the Queens Chamber of Commerce. "The Off-Hour Deliveries program will not only enhance traffic safety and reduce congestion but also contribute to the city's environmental protection. The Queens Chamber of Commerce encourages local businesses to take advantage of the new incentives that are part of this program as we work together to build a more equitable and climate-friendly city."

"The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce applauds the Off-Hour Deliveries incentive program. This important new DOT initiative is a sensible way to help small business make the transition to off-hour deliveries, while addressing the myriad issues associated with commercial deliveries and traffic safety," said Randy Peers, president and CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. "The Off-Hours initiative offer a wide range of practical solutions to benefit transportation matters across the board."

"The Off-Hour Delivery program offers a win-win for businesses and the city," said Lisa Sorin, president of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce. "By providing financial incentives, we can encourage businesses to adopt efficient delivery practices that reduce congestion, ultimately saving them time and money."

"Regional Plan Association (RPA) commends NYCDOT for today's investment in the City's Off-Hour Deliveries program. Incentivizing goods movement during the off-peak hours is an important way to encourage more sustainable truck movements and improve traffic safety," said Tiffany-Ann Taylor, vice president for transportation at the Regional Plan Association. "Helping smaller businesses retrofit their fleets or make other investments to support the transition in service is a creative way to address inequities in access to available funding for these companies. As the city prepares for the implementation of congestion pricing this summer, setting small businesses up for success by connecting them to this helpful resource benefits vulnerable road users, consumers, and the local economy. RPA is excited to see more of NYCDOT's recommendations from the Delivering Green plan transition to real-world application and generating more sustainable last-mile delivery options."

"Creating a safer, greener, and livable downtown is a top priority of ours, and excessive truck traffic during peak daytime hours is a barrier to its realization. The Off-Hour Deliveries incentive program is an innovative way to make our bustling mixed-use neighborhood even more welcoming and safe for pedestrians and cyclists," said Regina Myer, president of Downtown Brooklyn Partnership. "The program is an excellent way to reward businesses for contributing to the overall safety of the neighborhood while also decreasing carbon emissions. We applaud DOT for this inventive initiative and look forward to working with our businesses to implement a new delivery infrastructure."

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