Governor Hochul is facing two legal battles over her decision to indefinitely pause a planned toll increase to fund mass transit projects © Daniel DeLoach/Utica Observer-Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
(New York, NY) – Governor Kathy Hochul is being taken to court in two separate lawsuits. Both cases are related to her indefinite pause on congestion pricing. Hochul continues to face heat for the decision to essentially cancel the MTA’s plan to boost revenue in order to carry out system-wide improvements. The plan would have charged drivers entering Manhattan below 60th street a $15 toll, and it was scrapped just before it was set to go into effect.
The lawsuits were filed by City Club of New York and the Riders Alliance. They claim that the governor abused her power as the state’s Chief Executive and broke the law when she put the brakes on congestion pricing.
The governor maintains that the plan would have put an unfair burden on working New Yorkers like teachers. City Comptroller Brad Lander announced the lawsuits in a press conference, where mentioned that several transit projects, including accessibility initiatives, have been canceled due to lack of funding.
