Traffic on 42nd Street last Friday. A group of lawmakers have...

Traffic on 42nd Street last Friday. A group of lawmakers have asked President Donald Trump to stop congestion pricing. Credit: Ed Quinn

More than two dozen Republican and Democratic lawmakers from New York City are the latest to formally ask President Donald Trump to repeal the MTA’s congestion pricing program.

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island), in a letter co-signed by 25 members of the State Senate and Assembly, New York City Council and other elected officials, asked Trump on Thursday to "explore reversing the Biden Administration’s approval" of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Central Business District Tolling Program.

"This tax is yet another cash grab that is expected to funnel $1 billion annually to a mismanaged and bloated agency that has treated New Yorkers as bottomless ATMs," Malliotakis wrote.

MTA spokesperson Laura Cala-Rauch declined to comment on the letter.

The first-in-the-nation congestion pricing program took effect on Jan. 5, charging most vehicles $9 for driving below 60th Street in Manhattan. The program, which was adopted by the State Legislature in 2019, aims to reduce traffic congestion in Manhattan, improve air quality and generate funding for transit infrastructure investments.

The tolling program has been decried by many Republican and Democratic lawmakers, who have said the new tolls will overburden drivers, many of whom already pay tolls to enter Manhattan. Still, they haven't laid out a quick way that Trump could stop the program.

Transportation experts and supporters of the program, meanwhile, are confident the Manhattan tolls are here to stay, and say they're working.

In her letter, Malliotakis said the environmental assessment approved last year by President Joe Biden’s Federal Highway Administration was insufficient and did not provide "an adequate analysis of a program of such vast scale and impact." She urged Trump to call for a more stringent environmental review.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment. While campaigning, Trump in May vowed to "terminate" congestion pricing in his first week in office. Shortly after his election, Trump reiterated his opposition to the program, which he called a "regressive" tax, but also said he had "great respect" for Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Hours after Trump was inaugurated Monday, Democratic New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy also sent a letter to the new president, imploring his administration to give New York’s congestion pricing program "the close look it deserved but did not receive from the federal government last year."

Ronnie Tanner, a horse jockey in the '60s and '70s, and Kendrick Carmouche, a current jockey, spoke about the racism Black jockeys have faced. NewsdayTV's Jamie Stuart reports. Credit: Ed Murray, Jonathan Singh

'I had to keep my mouth shut'  Ronnie Tanner, a horse jockey in the '60s and '70s, and Kendrick Carmouche, a current jockey, spoke about the racism Black jockeys have faced. NewsdayTV's Jamie Stuart reports.

Ronnie Tanner, a horse jockey in the '60s and '70s, and Kendrick Carmouche, a current jockey, spoke about the racism Black jockeys have faced. NewsdayTV's Jamie Stuart reports. Credit: Ed Murray, Jonathan Singh

'I had to keep my mouth shut'  Ronnie Tanner, a horse jockey in the '60s and '70s, and Kendrick Carmouche, a current jockey, spoke about the racism Black jockeys have faced. NewsdayTV's Jamie Stuart reports.