MTA: Congestion pricing will continue past Trump administration deadline

The Trump administration’s Friday deadline for New York to pull the plug on its congestion pricing program "will come and go," and the MTA will continue tolling vehicles in Manhattan, the transit agency’s chief said Tuesday.

Following Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s decision to rescind federal approval for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Central Business District Tolling Program, Federal Highway Administration Executive Director Gloria Shepherd notified New York transportation officials in a letter last month that they "must cease the collection of tolls ... by March 21."

But MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber reiterated Tuesday that, unless ordered to do so by a court, the transit authority has no intention of taking down its congestion pricing program, which charges most vehicles $9 for driving below 60th Street in Manhattan during peak hours.

"The deadline will come and go and the congestion pricing program will continue to deliver a much better traffic environment for New York, and a lot of other economic benefits as well," Lieber told reporters at a Penn Station news conference marking National Transit Employee Appreciation Day.

Federal transportation officials did not respond when asked for comment about Lieber’s remarks, or about the potential consequences if New York keeps the tolls in place beyond the Friday deadline.

While not explicitly addressing the potential consequences of not complying with his order to stop the congestion pricing tolls, Duffy on Tuesday warned that the MTA could lose federal funding if it did not do address safety concerns on New York City buses and subways.

Asked by Newsday on Tuesday whether he was concerned about the potential for federal officials taking retaliatory actions — including withholding funding — against the MTA for not complying with their order to halt congestion pricing, Lieber said, "We’re playing by the rules, and we’re expecting them to play by the rules too."

Lieber noted that the MTA filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of the Trump administration’s decision and said the federal government has not yet responded to the suit. Until a court rules in the matter, "the status quo stays," Lieber said.

"This is not a test of wills. It’s just the reality that, when you have a dispute, things don’t change until a court orders it, and that has not yet taken place," said Lieber, adding that he remains "very confident that there won't be a roll back of congestion pricing."

Ciro Riccardi, spokesperson for Rep. Mike Lawler (R-Pearl River), a leading congestion pricing opponent in Congress, said in a statement that Lawler "strongly urges the MTA to abide by the federal government’s directive to halt the congestion pricing program, as it requires federal approval, which it no longer has."

President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed opposition for the first-in-the-nation congestion pricing program, which he has said could hurt New York’s economy by discouraging people from visiting Manhattan. But congestion pricing supporters have said that the program, which launched Jan. 5, has already proved successful, with measurable reductions in traffic into, out of, and within Manhattan, and other benefits, including reduced noise pollution from cars honking their horns.

Gov. Kathy Hochul tried to win over Trump on the virtues of congestion pricing during a Friday meeting at the White House, according to the governor’s office.

"It was respectful and she put before the president in the Oval Office the advantages and the benefits and the good news that congestion pricing has delivered," Lieber said of the latest meeting between Hochul and Trump. "He heard her and, as far as I know, the dialogue continues."

In a statement Tuesday, Duffy said: "The trend of violent crime, homelessness, and other threats to public safety on one of our nation’s most prominent metro systems is unacceptable. After years of soft-on-crime policies, our Department is stepping in to restore order. Commuters are sick and tired of feeling like they have to jeopardize their safety to get to work, go to school, or to travel around the city."

Duffy’s office said if the MTA does not promptly provide federal officials with a detailed plan to reduce transit crime, including fare evasion and "subway surfing" on top of train cars, the transit agency could face "enforcement actions, such as the redirecting or withholding of federal funding."

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.