New York Gov. Hochul has 75 days to reinstate the stalled program or risk losing billions in funding for the city’s aging transportation infrastructure and transit system.
Supporters of New York City’s shelved congestion pricing plan are urging Governor Kathy Hochul to let the program move forward before President-Elect Trump’s inauguration, when Trump has promised he would kill the program.
“Hochul's decision to pause the tolls ended up not even serving her political goals, with experts saying the issue barely registered in Tuesday's vote, even as Democrats won three Republican-held suburban congressional seats,” writes Dave Colon in Streetsblog NYC.
The governor could still revive the plan in time to get it passed before January. As Colon reminds readers, the program would be a major funding source for transportation and infrastructure projects. “The MTA paused $16 billion worth of capital projects this summer because it had no way to pay for them once Hochul paused the tolls.”
According to Colon, “It's unclear whether Hochul intends to keep congestion pricing or try to find major project funding for the MTA elsewhere — a tricky proposition with the also partially unfunded MTA 2025-29 capital plan on the horizon.”
Read the full story: NO URGENCY: With the Clock Ticking, Hochul Twiddles Thumbs on Congestion Pricing
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
In Texas, data centers are swallowing promised parkland
Residents who moved to Taylor, Texas for a rural community now have to contend with three data centers in their backyard.
How a Chicago-sized wind farm beat the odds and powered on
The project spanned five presidential administrations and a standoff with a U.S. military base.
MTA gives itself 30 days to transform pit into basketball court
The site has been under construction since 2022; the city originally estimated it would finish the court in 2024.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority