NEW YORK — Mayor Eric Adams’ administration joined a lawsuit with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to contest the Trump administration’s efforts to eliminate congestion pricing.
The MTA had initially filed suit with the support of Gov. Kathy Hochul, who effectively controls the transit authority, against the Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration in February. Both the city and state departments of transportation joined the legal case Friday, a spokesperson for the transit authority said.
“In case there were any doubts, MTA, State and City reaffirmed in a court filing that congestion pricing is here to stay and that the arguments Secretary Duffy made trying to stop it have zero merit,” said John J. McCarthy, the MTA’s chief of policy and external relations, in a statement.
President Donald Trump moved to nix the toll shortly after taking office, but the dueling parties agreed to keep it in place at least through early fall.
The move from Adams stands in contrast to his refusal to criticize Trump, following the Department of Justice’s successful efforts to dismiss federal corruption charges against the mayor.
He has also been tepid in public statements about the tolling program that charges drivers to enter Manhattan below 60th Street as a means of reducing traffic and raising money for mass transit.
Gothamist reported Thursday that the city’s corporation counsel submitted a memorandum supporting the suit. A spokesperson for Adams did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Adams, a Democrat who recently announced he will run for reelection as an independent, has been lukewarm in his support for congestion pricing amid fraught battles over the program’s fate between Trump and Hochul.
Adams has all but embraced Trump and instructed senior officials in his administration not to criticize the president, the online publication The City reported.
Trump — who moved to cancel the toll with a social media post that said “CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!” — has worried that it will hurt businesses still getting back on their feet after the pandemic.
“The President is not a king, and Defendants have no right to demand compliance with the Administration’s unlawful directives,” the suit reads. “Plaintiffs will continue to operate the Program as required by New York law unless and until Plaintiffs are directed to stop by a court order.”
The federal Department of Transportation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier this month, the department’s secretary, Sean Duffy, toured the subway with Adams. Duffy has threatened to strip the MTA of federal funding if it does not do more to address crime on the subway.
“I want the MTA to function really well,” Duffy said two weeks ago. “That’s why the mayor and I are here together to partner up and figure out how we can work together to improve the ridership for those who take the subway.”