A federal judge on Wednesday grilled Trump administration lawyers about the U.S. government’s continued opposition to New York City’s congestion pricing tolls in the latest round of the battle between the administration and New York transit officials over the traffic reduction plan.
The judge, Lewis J. Liman, did not rule in the case, and the tolls remain in place. A temporary injunction he issued last year blocked the White House’s effort to end the first-in-the-nation program. Additional court filings from the two sides are due on Feb. 6.
The three-hour hearing came weeks after President Trump renewed his attacks on the program; he has claimed, without offering evidence, that it will hurt New York’s economy. His transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, has threatened to withhold federal approval and funding from a range of highway and transit projects in New York if the toll is not canceled. Gov. Kathy Hochul and state officials have staunchly defended congestion pricing as both legal and effective.
At times impatient, with his chin in his hands, Judge Liman on Wednesday asked lawyers representing the U.S. Department of Transportation to explain the department’s rationale for attempting to halt the program even after it had been thoroughly vetted and approved by the federal government during the Biden administration.
“Can the secretary enter a contract for repair of roads,” Judge Liman asked, “and then say, ‘You know what, we changed our minds?’”
Congestion pricing, designed to reduce gridlock and fund public transit improvements, charges most drivers $9 to enter the busiest parts of Manhattan. It began last January and is operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the state agency that controls the city’s subways, buses and two commuter railroads. Weeks after it took effect, Mr. Duffy ordered Governor Hochul to stop the tolling plan, saying that it had exceeded the reach of the federal program used to authorize it.
Governor Hochul, who had once delayed the start of the tolls over economic concerns, vowed to keep the toll cameras on, and M.T.A. leaders immediately filed a lawsuit to block the federal interference.
Lawyers for the M.T.A. are now seeking a permanent injunction to protect the program, arguing that President Trump continues to threaten it. Earlier this month, Mr. Trump said on social media that the toll has “got to be ended, IMMEDIATELY!”
Roberta Kaplan, a lawyer for the authority, said the federal government’s attempts to abruptly kill congestion pricing, even after the state had begun to rely on toll revenue to finance a range of transportation projects, were dangerous and antithetical to democracy.
“President Trump is President Trump, not King Donald,” she said.
A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Transportation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Congestion pricing has already had wide-ranging effects on city life. About 27 million fewer vehicles have entered the tolling zone since the program started on Jan. 5, 2025, a reduction of about 73,000 vehicles per day.
Critics have argued that the tolls would harm the regional economy and local retail. In fact, not only were foot traffic and businesses in the zone not adversely affected, but the reduction in traffic has helped improve commute speeds for drivers far beyond Manhattan.
The program is also on track to help finance more than $15 billion in transit improvements over several years. After expenses, the toll raised $562 million in its first year, over $60 million more than expected.
The authority will use the revenue to borrow money through municipal bonds to fund major projects, including modernizing the subway’s nearly century-old signal system, making stations more accessible and expanding the Second Avenue subway line.
Janno Lieber, the chief executive of the M.T.A., said at a news conference after the hearing that the toll cameras would stay on.
“It seems ridiculous that we’re still arguing about whether the analysis done, you know, years and years ago, was actually accurate, and whether the secretary of transportation can just overturn it,” he said.
Olivia Bensimon contributed reporting.
Stefanos Chen is a Times reporter covering New York City’s transit system.
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