Trump moves to kill congestion pricing
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The Trump administration on Wednesday terminated its approval of New York’s congestion pricing program. AP file photo by Seth Wenig
By Jacob Kaye
The Department of Transportation on Wednesday yanked its approval of New York’s congestion pricing program, putting the future of the controversial toll into extreme doubt.
Under President Donald Trump’s direction, DOT Secretary Sean Duffy said in a letter to Governor Kathy Hochul that the agency had decided to "terminate" its approval of the pilot toll program, which first went into effect at the start of the year.
Declaring himself a king, the president of the United States said in a social media post that congestion pricing was “dead.” Trump had long promised to axe the toll program which Hochul herself had once been a major critic of.
“Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED,” Trump said in a tweet shared by the White House’s X account, which was accompanied by a drawing of the president wearing a crown. “LONG LIVE THE KING!"
For the time being, the toll cameras that begin at 60th Street and cover the Manhattan Central Business District will remain in effect.
Duffy said the DOT would work with state officials to "discuss the orderly cessation of toll operations under this terminated pilot project” but did not lay out a timeline for when the program would officially end.
Duffy’s order will also have to withstand at least one legal challenge.
Shortly after receiving the DOT’s letter, the MTA initiated legal proceedings in federal court attempting to stop the DOT’s reversal.
“Today, the MTA filed papers in federal court to ensure that the highly successful program — which has already dramatically reduced congestion, bringing reduced traffic and faster travel times, while increasing speeds for buses and emergency vehicles — will continue notwithstanding this baseless effort to snatch those benefits away from the millions of mass transit users, pedestrians and, especially, the drivers who come to the Manhattan Central Business District,” MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said in a statement. "It’s mystifying that after four years and 4,000 pages of federally-supervised environmental review — and barely three months after giving final approval to the Congestion Relief Program — USDOT would seek to totally reverse course.”
Hochul also blasted the unilateral move by Trump and said the state had a “lot of legal reasons why we know we are going to be victorious.”
“New York hasn’t labored under a king in over 250 years and we sure as hell aren’t going to start now,” Hochul said. “We stood up to a king and we won then. And in case you don’t know New Yorkers, we don’t back down in a fight, not now, not ever.”
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, who was a lukewarm supporter of congestion pricing, called the cancellation of the program an “attack on New York City by a federal administration that traffics in bad politics over good policy.”
“Congestion pricing is not only legally sound, as court after court has declared, but it is smart environmentally and responsible fiscally,” Richards said. “From reducing car traffic, carbon emissions and air pollution in Manhattan to raising badly needed funds for mass transit improvements here in Queens, congestion pricing is a success in the short-term and will be a game-changer for the long-term health of our city.”
This image was shared by the White House’s official X account on Wednesday after President Donald Trump’s administration moved to terminate its approval of New York’s congestion pricing program. Image via White House/X
The $9 toll program was officially approved by the DOT in November and put into effect at the start of January. Seven weeks after its implementation, the state has reported an overall reduction in traffic congestion on some of Manhattan’s busiest streets. They’ve also reported an uptick in public transit use.
But even while congestion pricing appeared to become more popular after going into effect, some of its longtime opponents remained unconvinced about its potential to reduce congestion and pollution, and celebrated its apparent demise on Wednesday.
“President Trump kept his promise to New Yorkers by stopping the unfair congestion pricing scheme, a scam tax that was unjust from the very start,” said City Councilmember Robert Holden, a registered Democrat who often votes with the Republican caucus of the legislature. “New Yorkers deserve real solutions to traffic and transit issues — not another cash grab disguised as policy.”
