Trump administration pushes deadline for NYC to kill congestion pricing
Feds extend NYC congestion pricing deadline
The Trump administration has granted New York City another 30 days to comply with demands to roll back congestion pricing, extending the original Friday deadline. Fox 5’s Teresa Priolo reports from Fort Lee.
NEW YORK - The Trump administration is pushing its deadline for New York to comply with its order to halt Manhattan’s new congestion pricing plan.
The deadline, originally slated for Friday, was extended by 30 days, meaning the federal government is demanding New York Gov. Kathy Hochul to kill the first-in-the-US toll by mid-April.
What they're saying:
"Your refusal to end cordon pricing and your open disrespect towards the federal government is unacceptable," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy tweeted Thursday. "Just as your high tolls and no free road option are a slap in the face to hard working Americans, your refusal to approve two vital pipelines that will lower fuel costs by 50% are against the public’s best interests.
Hochul has vowed "orderly resistance" to the federal order, emphasizing New York's determination to uphold the congestion pricing system, which is meant to thin traffic and pump new revenue into the MTA.
Cars pass under toll machines on Broadway Avenue in the Manhattan borough of New York City on November 14, 2024. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)
Duffy announced earlier this year that he'd rescinded federal approval of the toll, but experts say only Congress has the authority to do so.
"[The Federal Highway Administration] can't flout the authorization by Congress," Bennett Gershman, a law professor at Pace University, told FOX 5 NY. "Congress has to repeal this law, or they have to work out a plan to implement the law the way they want to, but this is something that Congress has given to the city, the power to do this."
He also said the MTA's lawsuit will prevent the federal government from ending congestion pricing until it's settled.
The backstory:
The congestion pricing plan, launched on Jan. 5, aims to reduce traffic congestion and generate revenue for transit improvements. Similar programs exist in cities like London and Stockholm but have not been tried in the U.S. before.
It implements a $9 toll for most drivers traveling below 60th Street.
This map shows the proposed zone for New York City congestion pricing.
The Source: This article uses reporting from the Associated Press, statements from government officials and an interview with legal expert Bennett Gershman.