Federal judge upholds New York City congestion pricing

(The Center Square) — A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from withholding federal funding for New York City's congestion pricing program.

The ruling issued Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman imposes a temporary restraining order barring the U.S. Department of Transportation from enforcing a directive to shut down the controversial tolling project while the legal challenge plays out in court.

Gov. Kathy Hochul heralded the judge's decision as a "massive victory for New York commuters, vindicating our right as a state to make decisions regarding what’s best for our streets."

"New Yorkers deserve to control our own traffic patterns, keep gridlock off our streets and protect our clean air," the Democrat said in a statement.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sent a letter to Hochul in February saying the Federal Highway Administration was pulling its approval of congestion pricing and would work with New York State on an “orderly termination of the tolls."

Duffy called congestion pricing a “slap in the face” to working-class Americans and small business owners and set a deadline of Friday to shut the program down. The city filed a lawsuit seeking to block the move.

In April, Duffy told Hochul that DOT may withhold environmental approvals or project funding beginning on May 28 if the state does not end congestion pricing. Hochul has declined.

New York’s first-in-the-nation toll for drivers entering Manhattan's Congestion Relief Zone during peak hours got underway on Jan. 5 after a U.S. District Court judge denied New Jersey’s last-ditch push to keep the plan from going into effect.

Under the program, most passenger cars and trucks pay a $9 toll between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays and between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekends.

Since the program’s implementation, New York City officials have reported faster commutes for drivers and less traffic congestion, and New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority says the revenue it is generating will put the agency on track to meet its funding goals.

Trump, a native New Yorker who now lives in Florida, pledged on the campaign trail to "terminate" the program if he wins the presidency.