A lawyer for New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has urged a federal judge to issue a ruling in one of the major lawsuits challenging the congestion pricing plan revived by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul Thursday.
Attorney Randy Mastro sent a letter to the court Wednesday night — in anticipation of Hochul announcing the upcoming $9 toll for drivers entering Manhattan below 60th Street — pressing Newark federal Judge Leo Gordon to eliminate his own congestion when it comes to ruling on their case.
“These recent developments provide further evidence that this case is ripe for decision,” Mastro wrote.
The case is one of nearly a dozen lawsuits challenging Hochul’s moves to both enact, and then pause, the plan for congestion pricing still weaving their way through state and federal courts.
Mastro’s appears to be the only filing so far reacting to Hochul undoing her pause of the plan with a new lowered toll amount, set to launch Jan. 5.
The high-profile attorney told The Post that taking the toll from $15 to $9 still fails to address their concerns that the plan was shoved through “without a full environmental review.”
“The MTA’s congestion pricing scheme remains as flawed today as it has been all along,” Mastro said. “We sued to block this scheme from going forward, and we now look forward to the court ruling in our case.”
On Thursday, Murphy said that he remains “firmly opposed to any attempt to force through a congestion pricing proposal” during the waning days of the Biden administration, especially when considering “the message that voters across America sent last Tuesday.”
“I have consistently expressed openness to a form of congestion pricing that meaningfully protects the environment and does not put unfair burdens upon hardworking New Jersey commuters.” Murphy said. “Today’s plan woefully fails that test.”
Another suit challenging congestion pricing brought by a coalition calling themselves New Yorkers Against Congestion Pricing Tax, who filed papers Thursday opposing the federal government’s motion to dismiss, said that Hochul was trying to avoid getting the plan axed entirely by Donald Trump’s incoming administration.
“In terms of our lawsuit, the governor’s announcement creates an immediate need for the court to intervene on our constitutional claim,” said lawyer Jack Lester, who cites environmental concerns as the basis for their recent legal filing.
After Hochul’s announcement on Thursday, lawyers representing the Trucking Association of New York in their congestion pricing lawsuit against the MTA told a federal judge in a letter that they would need to resubmit their legal complaint once the revamped tolling structure is officially approved. They added that the MTA’s motion to dismiss their case “will soon be moot” as a result of the changes.
Not all of the lawsuits concerning congestion pricing look to ax the tax — a pair of suits filed this summer after Hochul’s stunning announcement that she would be pausing the long-planned toll have asked a judge to rule her decision as illegal and force the congestion-culling plan to proceed.
Arthur Schwartz, an attorney in a suit brought by the Rider’s Alliance and a coalition of pro-transit and environmental groups, said that while he is happy the plan is “back on track,” the reduced revenue leaves lingering questions.
“$9 is 60% of $15, which means that there will still be a big hole in the MTA’s capital budget, and a continued disregard for people with disabilities,” Schwartz said. “The governor was wrong back in June and she hasn’t done enough now for all NYC transit customers.”