The MTA has ordered contractors to stop work on phase two of the Second Ave. subway, citing uncertain funding following Gov. Hochul’s decision to can congestion pricing.
The order comes as the MTA scrambles to cover $28 billion in projects with $13 billion in funds, following the loss of a projected $15 billion that was supposed to come from congestion pricing.
As previously reported, transit brass have said they will be prioritizing repair and maintenance projects over planned expansions and upgrades.
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The federal government announced last year that it was ponying up a massive $3.4 billion grant toward completion of the project — if the MTA could put $4.3 billion of its own money on the table.
In the absence of congestion pricing money, the federal grant — and with it the whole phase 2 project — could be in jeopardy.
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Congestion pricing was expected to generate $1 billion in revenue per year, money that the MTA would then borrow against with a $15 billion bond issuance.
Hochul’s two plans to date to generate an alternative funding source — an increase in New York City’s payroll tax and a one-time payment of $1 billion out of the state’s general fund — were shot down by lawmakers in Albany.
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