Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Department of Transportation may take action to withhold funding and approvals for highway projects in Manhattan beginning May 28 if New York does not end its congestion pricing program today, a DOT spokesperson confirmed in an emailed statement Tuesday.
- An April 21 letter to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul from Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned the state “risks serious consequences” if it fails to comply with the Trump administration’s Feb. 19 revocation of the Federal Highway Administration’s prior approval of the tolling program.
- In a statement to news media in April, a spokesperson for Hochul said, “The program is working. Traffic is down, business is up and the cameras are staying on.”
Dive Insight:
Before he was elected to a second term, President Donald Trump voiced his opposition to New York’s congestion pricing plan in a May 2024 social media post vowing to “terminate” the program. Duffy called the program “a slap in the face to working class Americans and small business owners” in a Feb. 19 news release.
“As stated in the April 21 letter, New York Governor Hochul has until no later than May 21st to respond to the Department. Following that deadline, and consideration of the Governor’s response, [the Federal Highway Administration] may implement compliance actions as soon as May 28th,” the DOT spokesperson said.
The tolling plan is designed to reduce traffic congestion in Manhattan’s central business district and raise funds for the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s capital investments. Early data show it is working. The state announced March 21 that traffic in the affected area was down 11% in February over the same period in 2024 and public transit ridership in the first two months of this year rose between 4% and 9% compared to the same period the year before.
Congestion pricing is also meeting its goals for revenue. The MTA said in a March 24 press release that it had collected nearly $52 million in February and was on track to bring in $500 million by the end of the year.
The MTA sued Duffy in federal court to prevent the administration from disrupting the program. A leaked memo from federal lawyers warned that the court is unlikely to uphold the FHWA’s arguments for terminating the tolling program.
A poll of New York State registered voters published Tuesday by the Sienna College Research Institute, based in Loudonville, N.Y., found that respondents approved of Hochul’s efforts to oppose the DOT’s actions to end congestion pricing by a 46-36% margin. However, only 39% want the program to continue. “Democrats and voters from New York City are the driving force in support of both congestion pricing and wanting Hochul to continue to fight for it,” pollsters said.
Referring to the DOT’s previous and newly announced termination dates, Danny Pearlstein, policy and communications director at transit advocacy organization Riders Alliance, said in an email, “A thrice postponed deadline is a dead letter. The cameras are staying on.”
The MTA board holds its next regular meeting on May 28.
Timeline of New York's congestion pricing plan
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April 1, 2019New York state enacts a tolling program for New York City designed to reduce traffic congestion in Manhattan and generate revenue for the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
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March 30, 2021The Federal Highway Administration tells New York authorities they must conduct an environmental assessment of the project including stakeholders from Connecticut, New Jersey and New York.
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May 5, 2023The FHWA conditionally approves the congestion pricing plan.
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June 27, 2023New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announces the FHWA’s final approval of the program, saying, “Congestion pricing will reduce traffic in our crowded downtown, improve air quality and provide critical resources to the MTA.”
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March 27, 2024The MTA board approves toll rates for the congestion pricing plan, setting the stage to begin collecting tolls. By this point, the state of New Jersey and some civil rights and labor organizations have filed lawsuits against the MTA to stop the program.
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June 2, 2024New York Gov. Kathy Hochul orders an indefinite pause to the tolling program, which was set to begin June 30, 2024.
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Nov. 14, 2024Under pressure to reinstate the congestion pricing plan before President-elect Donald Trump takes office, Hochul annouces the program will go forward with lower tolls.
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Nov. 17, 2024The MTA board approves the revised plan and sets midnight Jan. 5, 2025, for tolls to begin.
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Jan. 5, 2025New York’s congestion pricing plan goes into effect.
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Feb. 19, 2025Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy rescinds the Federal Highway Administration’s approval of New York’s congestion pricing program.
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April 21, 2025Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy threatens to withhold funding and approvals for highway projects in Manhattan in a letter to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul if the state’s congestion pricing program isn’t stopped by May 21.
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May 28, 2025Date set by DOT for compliance actions to begin.
