Stating it has reached an “impasse” in talks with USDOT, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) signaled its intention to seek court protection of the toll program in a May 2 letter, Bloomberg (via Transport Topics) reports. “The MTA suggested it will ask the judge on the case to issue a preliminary injunction blocking DOT from withholding federal approvals or funding for New York as it continues to impose the toll.” On April 21, USDOT Secretary Sean Duffy threatened the federal action unless New York State shuts down the congestion pricing program by May 21. US District Judge Lewis Liman, who is overseeing the thorny dispute between New York and the Trump administration, previously issued a May 5 deadline for MTA to request an injunction.
AET (All-Electronic Tolling) Congestion Pricing Issues of Law Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New York New York City US Department of Transportation (USDOT)
California Court Orders LA Metro To Redo Aerial Gondola Environmental Study
KTLA reports, “The proposed aerial transit project that would connect Dodger Stadium with downtown Los Angeles is facing yet another hurdle after a state appeals court rejected [LA Metro’s 2024 approval] of the environmental impact report for the project, as first reported by the L.A. Times. Officially known as the Los Angeles Aerial Rapid Transit Project, the endeavor would link the stadium to Union Station and Chinatown at Los Angeles State Historic Park via a suspended gondola system funded by former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and his son, Drew.” [TRN inserted a link in quoted text.]
The appeals court ordered LA Metro to set aside the project’s certified environmental impact report until it completes a revised report. The gondola proposal still hasn’t obtained necessary approvals from other state and city agencies. It “has been a hotly debated topic for years after it was first unveiled in 2018.”…