Traffic entering Manhattan below 60th Street dropped by 7.5% in the first week after the start of a controversial $9 toll on driving in that area.

With the first week of New York’s Congestion Pricing toll in the books, commuters are reaping a reward, spending less time in traffic in exchange for their $9 toll to enter lower Manhattan, said the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Traffic in Midtown and lower Manhattan was down nearly 8% after the first full week of congestion tolling, according to preliminary traffic data released Monday by the MTA. “It has been a very good week here in New York,

The MTA has released its first congestion pricing data, revealing a 7.5% drop in vehicles entering Manhattan’s congestion zone south of 60th Street. FOX 5's Linda Schmidt has the story.

The introduction of a $9 congestion fee has resulted in faster speeds on some of the city’s famously snarled streets and fewer commuters on the bridges and tunnels. “The traffic is absolutely less, even during rush hour,

Drivers saved travel time entering Manhattan’s central business district during the first week of congestion pricing, according to the MTA. Congestion pricing began in New York City on Sunday, Jan. 5.

Data from the first week of New York City’s congestion pricing shows the policy brought a small but noticeable dip in traffic in Manhattan.

In the days since, total traffic in the tolling zone has dropped by 7.5% — or roughly 43,000 cars per day — compared to the equivalent period last year, Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials said.