Posted on 01/04/2025 1:26:31 AM PST by Libloather
A New Jersey federal judge Friday shot down a last-ditch attempt to stop New York City’s controversial congestion toll from taking effect Sunday.
Judge Leo Gordon clarified that his Monday ruling — finding that the toll plan didn’t sufficiently lay out a plan to mitigate the impacts the toll would have on New Jersey — would still allow the toll to start Jan. 5 at midnight.
Gordon made his explanation at a last-minute hearing in Newark federal court, where lawyers for Gov. Phil Murphy argued that the plan shouldn’t be allowed to take effect until after measures are put in place to address the environmental impacts the toll will have on Garden State communities.
If the plan did go forward without addressing the negative effects, it would cause irreversible damage in New Jersey and other local communities, while another delay wouldn’t hurt the MTA, NJ lawyers argued.
“The day they flip the switch, there will be irreparable harm … you can’t put the genie back in the bottle,” lawyer Randy Mastro argued, citing how air pollution and chronic disease will skyrocket in New Jersey.
“They are going to suffer air pollution. They are going to suffer chronic illness and that is an outrage. New Jerseyans lives are literally at stake!”
MTA CEO Janno Lieber celebrated the court’s decision at a press conference Friday evening.
“Now, after untold numbers of lawsuits and lots of fighting in the press, the time for debating for lawsuits and debating is over,” Lieber boasted.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
NYC has essentially become a lawless society since 2017 and even more so since 2020. At some point, no one is going to pay to use the subway out of frustration of seeing so many people just blatantly ignoring the fares and the MTA budget shortfall will get even deeper. NY will soon need another funding scheme that punishes law abiding tax payers simply because the city/state does not want to enforce the rules, particularly against certain "communities" where fare evasion is most prevalent.
You couldn’t pay me to go to NYC let a lone pay to go there.
The Dems played this one smart. NJ was close in November, and this ‘Welcome to NY City’ scheme may have flipped the Leftists commuter vote and put Trump over the top if it started before the election.
The government is hostile to people being mobile because that is what allows people to lift themselves out of poverty.
YEP, the MTA system is vital for movement around the burroughs
of NYC. Without it people would be basically locked down to the
areas where they could walk to and back. Many years ago I spent
about 21 months there station with the military police dept. It was
free to us either in uniform or with military passes.
If the Petroleum Producing companies would just STOP all Sales and Deliveries to New York to mitigate any future damages incurred by their new law, they wouldn’t have to worry about this.
“The government is hostile to people being mobile because that is what allows people to lift themselves out of poverty.”
Easy solution. Build a huge parking lot on the Jersey side of the Hudson. NY restaurants and other businesses can drive to Jersey and pick up their deliveries.
Many people will just not go into the city. The restaurants, theaters, museums & stores will be the ones hurt and they are already stressed.
NYC continues to be destroyed by liberal policies. The best part is the officials allowed the MTA to devolve into a jungle of feral animals first and the MTA is not an option for a trip to the city, especially one that ends after dark.
MTA is not an option for a trip to the city, especially one that ends after dark.
It is always nighttime in the subways
If it makes you feel any better, the State of New York isn’t going to take any action against most drivers who use illegal means to avoid paying the congestion pricing fee, either.
My prediction is that the program gets canceled after 2-3 years when the revenue it raises falls far short of their projections. The streets of NYC will be filled with unregistered vehicles, cars with fake license plates or license plate screens that block the cameras from getting a clear view, etc.
Amen....... amen
The solution is simple. Just cease doing business there. In two weeks it will all be over
Congress could block this, and Trump should propose it.
ANd I am left to wonder what, if any, effect this will have on businesses in NYC?
Just wall off, pour concrete, to all roads leading into Manhattan. Permanently.
Let ‘em all walk in and dodge the piles of trash.
Give ‘em two days — no food.
NYC is an amazing testament to the power of the black market.
Almost everything is illegal—but somehow commerce gets done anyway.
NYC is an amazing testament to the power of the black market.
Almost everything is illegal—but somehow commerce gets done anyway.
Judge is probably getting a kickback.
I don’t understand. How does this “congestion tax” increase pollution and kill people.
They are implying that people will drive to New Jersey and park then take the metro into NYC to avoid the toll vs just driving into NYC directly. You still would have to pay the bridge tolls or the tunnel tolls entering NYC so people who park and ride save both tolls now. You can get a month long metropass for pretty cheap too every time I am in NYC I always get a 7 day pass two if there for 7+ days. Too bad mayor Adams threw away all the good work Rudy did keeping crime down.
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