The Metropolitan Transportation Authority should begin refunding commuters’ money spent on New York’s congestion pricing scheme, according to US Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-New Jersey).
One day after President Donald Trump vowed to kill the agency’s controversial initiative, Gottheimer blasted Gov. Kathy Hochul’s directive for the MTA to continue collecting tolls pending a federal court order as “outrageous.”
“If New York insisted on keeping the cameras in place, they should be prepared to reimburse every Jersey commuter for the tolls they’re paying. Hardworking Jersey families should not be forced to continue to bail out the MTA’s woeful and legendary mismanagement,” Gottheimer said in a statement.
On Wednesday, US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a letter to Hochul that he was revoking federal approval of the tolls – prompting a swift lawsuit against the Trump administration by the MTA.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy was among congestion pricing’s fiercest critics, Duffy noted in the letter.
Hochul received the letter just one day after she said Jersey drivers “are not forced to come here,” during a press conference.
“I personally would like to have all the New York teams play in New York … I’m not proposing that the federal government go annex the Meadowlands,” Hochul blasted.
Her quips drew outrage from Gottheimer, who wrote in his statement that Hochul “owes an apology to hardworking Jersey commuters for claiming they are ‘not forced’ to come to New York.”
“These comments are a slap in the face to the cops, firefighters, nurses, teachers, and countless other professionals who commute to New York every day to work, contribute to the economy, and support local businesses,” he added.
In its lawsuit against the US Department of Transportation, the MTA argued that the federal agency doesn’t have the sole authority to axe congestion pricing.
Even if a judge does side with the feds, it’s unlikely that commuters would ever see their toll expenses back in their bank accounts, New York-based attorney Arthur Schwartz told the Gothamist.
On Wednesday, MTA Chair Janno Lieber expressed confidence that the program would beat DOT’s court order, citing the several other legal hurdles congestion pricing has survived so far.
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