NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration has given New York until next month to comply with its order to halt Manhattan’s new congestion pricing system, but state officials on Wednesday vowed to continue the tolling program, which is meant to thin traffic and pump new revenue into the nation’s busiest transit system.
The Federal Highway Administration said the $9 toll on most vehicles entering Manhattan neighborhoods south of Central Park must end by March 21, according to a letter provided to The Associated Press by the U.S. Department of Transportation on Wednesday.
The letter was sent to New York officials on Feb. 20, the day after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced he'd rescinded federal approval of the toll, calling it a "slap in the face to working class Americans and small business owners.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday promised an “orderly resistance” to the federal decree, which called for an “orderly termination” to congestion pricing. Similar toll programs have long existed in other cities, including London, Stockholm, Milan and Singapore, but have never been tried before in the U.S.
“We will not be steamrolled here in New York,” the Democratic governor vowed at a board meeting of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the state agency that’s overseeing the new toll. “We're in this fight together, and I’m in this as long as it takes.”
Hochul met privately with Trump at the White House on Friday, presenting him a booklet her press secretary, Avi Small, said showed the early success of congestion pricing.
The MTA has filed suit in Manhattan federal court, arguing the Trump administration lacks legal authority to revoke approval for the program, which was granted under Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration.
“The federal government cannot unilaterally terminate the program,” Janno Lieber, chair and CEO of the MTA, said on an appearance on NY1 last week. “Once it’s begun, there’s all kinds of case law in federal courts about the procedures that the federal government has to use to take away an approval to reverse a decision. None of this complies with that, and that’s why we are so comfortable that this is a strong case, and we’re going to win.”
Lieber argued Wednesday that the tolling plan, which launched on Jan. 5, is working as intended.
He said there are 60,000 fewer vehicles a day driving into the tolling zone — a 10% reduction — while travel times are noticeably faster on tunnels and bridges into Manhattan as well as its busy cross streets.
Pedestrian traffic is up around 4% and economic activity appears to be up, with Broadway theater attendance, restaurant reservations and retail sales in the tolling zone seeing increases over a similar period in 2024, Lieber said.
He said the MTA is on track to generate roughly $500 million from the toll program by the end of the year, allowing it to move forward with planned subway, bus and transit improvements. The MTA earned nearly $50 million in roughly the first month of the toll's operation, according to a report the agency released Monday.
“We’re not going back, no matter what the rhetoric from other parts of the East Coast is," Lieber said. “We tried gridlock for 50 years, and it was bad for our economy, it was bad for our health and it was bad for New Yorkers' quality of life.”
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Associated Press writer Anthony Izaguirre in Albany contributed to this story.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday signaled a cautious approach to future interest rate cuts, in sharp contrast with other Fed officials who have called for a more urgent approach. In remarks in Providence, Rhode Island, Powell noted that there are risks to both of the Fed’s goals of seeking maximum employment and stable prices. His approach is in sharp contrast to some members of the Fed’s rate-setting committee who are pushing for faster cuts.
President Donald Trump’s efforts to reshape the American media landscape have led to the suspension of late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel.
Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield is leaving the ice cream brand after 47 years. He says the freedom the company used to have to speak up on social issues has been stifled
The Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate by a quarter-point Wednesday and projected it would do so twice more this year as concern grows at the central bank about the health of the nation’s labor market. The move is the Fed’s first cut since December and lowered its short-term rate to about 4.1%, down from 4.3%. Fed officials, led by Chair Jerome Powell, had kept their rate unchanged this year as they evaluated the impact of tariffs, tighter immigration enforcement, and other Trump administration policies on inflation and the economy. The only dissenter was Stephen Miran, the recent Trump-appointee.
After a late-night vote and last-minute ruling, the Federal Reserve began a key meeting on interest rate policy Tuesday with both a new Trump administration appointee and an official the White House has targeted for removal.
The Trump administration has issued its first warnings to online services that offer unofficial versions of popular drugs like the blockbuster obesity treatment Wegovy.
Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama says his new Cabinet will include an artificial intelligence “minister” in charge of fighting corruption. The AI, named Diella, will oversee public funding projects and combat corruption in public tenders. Diella was launched earlier this year as a virtual assistant on the government's public service platform. Corruption has been a persistent issue in Albania since 1990. Rama's Socialist Party won a fourth consecutive term in May. It aims to deliver EU membership for Albania in five years, but the opposition Democratic Party remains skeptical.
The Trump administration has asked an appeals court to remove Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve’s board of governors by Monday, before the central bank’s next vote on interest rates. Trump sought to fire Cook Aug. 25, but a federal judge ruled late Tuesday that the removal was illegal and reinstated her to the Fed’s board.
President Donald Trump's administration is appealing a ruling blocking him from immediately firing Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook as he seeks more control over the traditionally independent board. The notice of appeal was filed Wednesday, hours after U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb handed down the ruling. The White House insists the Republican president had the right to fire Cook over mortgage fraud allegations involving properties in Michigan and Georgia from before she joined the Fed. Cook's lawsuit denies the allegations and says the firing was unlawful. The case could soon reach the Supreme Court, which has allowed Trump to fire members of other independent agencies but suggested that power has limitations at the Fed.
Chief Justice John Roberts has let President Donald Trump remove a member of the Federal Trade Commission, the latest in a string of high-profile firings allowed for now by the Supreme Court.
