Extra Time: NYC slams brakes on congestion pricing; book shines spotlight on missing student

NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- In this edition of Eyewitness News Extra Time, we have more on the fallout surrounding congestion pricing and the decision to put the plan on hold with less than four weeks before tolling was set to begin.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul directed the MTA to ditch the plan for now, saying that implementing it now as New York City is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic "risked too many unintended consequences for New Yorkers at this time."

The plan calls for drivers to be charged up to $15 to enter Manhattan, south of 60th Street. The toll would be higher for trucks. Taxis and rideshares had planned to pass on their added costs to the customers. All of this was set to begin on June 30.

The MTA banked on congestion pricing to pull in $1 billion a year, with 80% of that money being set aside for improvements to subways and buses, including structural repairs, updated trains, and zero emissions buses.

The governor says she is still committed to these projects. Now she is exploring other funding sources.

Scanners to collect the tolls were put up months ago, but the big question now is: what happens next?

Eyewitness News reporter N.J. Burkett has the story, while transportation consultant Sam Schwarz joins the show with more on the decision.

Here are the other major headlines from Wednesday's show:

New book shines spotlight on college student who disappeared 13 years ago

Thirteen years ago, Indiana University sophomore Lauren Spierer vanished after a night out on campus.

The 20-year-old was last seen on the morning of June 3, 2011, as she was leaving an acquaintance's apartment in Bloomington. She was on her way home, but she never arrived.

Spierer's disappearance gained local, national and global attention, but it remains a cold case.

Now there is a new book filled with new information about the last people to see Spierer alive. It's called "College Girl, Missing: The True Story of How a Young Woman Disappeared in Plain Sight."

Joining us with more is investigative journalist and author, Shawn Cohen.

Young director makes debut at Tribeca Film Festival

The Tribeca Film Festival kicks off Wednesday night in Lower Manhattan.

The festival is now in its 23rd year. It was the brainchild of Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal to revitalize the area in the wake of September 11th. The event has since grown to a major spectacle of film and the arts.

Joining us with more is someone who is making their feature directorial debut at the Tribeca Film Festival, Tiffany Paulsen.

You can watch 'Eyewitness News Extra Time' live Monday-Friday at 6:30 p.m. on ABC7NY.com or our ABC7NY app on Roku, FireTV, Apple TV and Android TV.