Come November, South Jersey residents will see an increase in the cost of gas. Governor Chris Christie signed a law raising the state’s gas tax by 23 cents per gallon on Friday, October 14.

Upping the tax – for the first time since 1988 – will help pay for an eight-year, $16 billion transportation funding program that went broke over the summer.

The Democrat-led New Jersey Legislature passed the law, which includes phased-in cuts to the state’s sales and estate taxes, a week before Christie signed it. On Friday, Christie also repealed an executive order shutting down all non-essential transportation projects that he enforced in June.

“Over the next eight years, a record $32 billion in state and federal funds will be invested in infrastructure improvements and modernizations in New Jersey,” Christie said following his signing of the law.

The boost makes New Jersey’s the sixth-highest gas tax in the country. It’s currently 49th. The good news? New Jersey’s gas tax is still lower than neighboring Pennsylvania and New York.