In Newark, New Jersey, a federal judge has denied the state’s plea to delay the introduction of New York City’s contentious congestion pricing scheme.
The ruling allows the plan to begin as scheduled on Sunday, according to Fox 5.
The New Jersey officials who brought the case against the Metropolitan Transportation Authority argued that the environmental assessments done by the agency were inadequate.
Judge Leo Gordon had remarked earlier that the authorities needed to clarify the amount of funding that New Jersey communities would get to mitigate the anticipated pollution impacts of congestion pricing. Nonetheless, he did not indicate if the tolls could be put in place.
The ruling allows the plan to begin as scheduled on Sunday. (Getty Images)
“We’ve been studying this issue for five years, but it only takes about five minutes if you’re in midtown Manhattan to see that New York has a real traffic problem,” Lieber said at a news conference. “I recognize there’s been a lot of controversy about this program and there are a lot of people who are concerned about the impact of congestion pricing. To them, I want to say the point is to make the city better for everybody.”
Congestion pricing is expected to generate billions in revenue to modernize New York’s transit infrastructure, but it has faced criticism from New Jersey officials and commuters who say it places an unfair burden on people driving in from outside of New York.
MTA Chair Janno Lieber praised the ruling, noting the potential benefits of congestion pricing. (Getty Images)
Some commuters could face daily charges of up to $22, which would include existing tolls for Port Authority crossings.
President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly said he plans to block the plan after he takes office later this month.
