The federal government and New York transit officials have agreed to allow congestion pricing, the tolling program opposed by President Trump, to continue until at least midsummer, and most likely into the fall, according to a new court filing.
But it remains unclear whether the federal Department of Transportation, which has raised the specter of defunding mass transit projects in the state, could exert pressure outside the court system to try to force the program to end sooner. Sean Duffy, the secretary of transportation, has said he wants the toll to end by April 20.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the program, declined to comment on the letter that detailed the agreement. The document was filed on Friday in federal court in Manhattan as part of a lawsuit by the M.T.A. against the Department of Transportation over the government’s efforts to kill the toll. The letter said that the authority and federal officials would abide by a timeline that would not resolve the dispute until at least late July. It also noted that the federal government does not currently plan to seek an injunction, which could have potentially halted the program in the meantime.
The Department of Transportation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The agreement signals another temporary reprieve for the M.T.A. and Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has vowed to keep the tolling cameras on. Congestion pricing, which charges most drivers $9 to enter Manhattan below 60th Street during peak traffic times, began in January, with the goals of reducing traffic and raising $15 billion for critical mass-transit upgrades in the region.
Sam Spokony, a spokesman for the governor, declined to comment on the court document, but reiterated Ms. Hochul’s support for the program. “Since congestion pricing took effect three months ago, traffic is down and business is up — and that’s the kind of progress we’re going to keep delivering for New Yorkers,” he said.
For months, President Trump has promised to kill congestion pricing, claiming, without offering evidence, that the toll is harmful to the city’s economy.
So far, the program appears to be working. In March, about 2.5 million fewer vehicles entered the congestion pricing zone, compared with the historical average — a 13 percent decline in traffic, according to M.T.A. data. Commute times have shortened for a range of drivers and bus riders, and concerns about a drop in foot traffic and retail sales have not been borne out.
In its first two months, the program billed about $100 million in tolls, on pace to fund the borrowing of billions more for long overdue upgrades to the subway, buses and commuter rail lines.
“This is huge,” said Danny Pearlstein, a spokesman for Riders Alliance, a transit advocacy group that is named in the lawsuit as a supporter of the toll. “The longer this thing stays in effect, the happier people are going to be with it,” he added, noting that more residents were coming around to the benefits of the program.
On Friday, lawyers for both the M.T.A. and the Department of Transportation agreed to the schedule that would keep the judge overseeing the case, Lewis J. Liman, from rendering a decision until the summer. The additional time required to consider all of the motions that the two sides will submit could mean that the toll can stay in place until at least the fall.
But there are risks to the program outside the courtroom. In a social media post on March 20, a day before the first deadline that his office set for congestion pricing to end, Mr. Duffy issued what many observers considered a veiled threat. He said the governor’s decision to keep charging the toll was a sign of “open disrespect,” and that he would extend his deadline through April 20. “Continued noncompliance will not be taken lightly,” he wrote, after noting that the state relies on billions of dollars in funding from the federal government.
Other challenges could arise. Jack Lester, a lawyer representing a group of residents and businesses that oppose congestion pricing, said that other parties, including his clients, could seek an injunction sometime in late May, when the federal government will be required to respond to the M.T.A.’s complaint. There are several other lawsuits in which a range of plaintiffs, including truck drivers and a teachers’ union, are seeking to end the toll. Judge Liman, who presided over a number of the suits, has already dismissed key arguments in those cases, which allowed the program to proceed.
But the judge also said that the fate of congestion pricing should be decided in the courts, not through the political maneuvers that the Trump administration seems to be suggesting.
“They’re talking about strong-arm tactics, withholding federal funding,” he said. “It could be that litigation is only secondary in their strategy.”
Stefanos Chen is a Times reporter covering New York City’s transit system.
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