A grim-faced Governor Kathy Hochul (at mic), flanked by NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch (left) and MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Leiber (second from right), demanding that Homeland Security disburse the $34 million earmarked for counterterrorism in the MTA. Of the 21 applicants for the funds, the MTA was the only one that the feds held back. ( Photo: MTA) Hochul Demands Trump Admin Restore $34 Million in Anti-Terror Funds for the MTA Tense and unsmiling, Governor Kathy Hochul spoke at a 25-minute MTA press conference on Oct. 9, calling on Kristi Noem’s... News 12 Oct 2025 | 11:18
Gridlock Alert Days started with the kickoff of the UN General Assembly on Sept. 22, banning vehicular traffic north of 34th Street. The DOT has designated 20 Gridlock Alert Days between now and the end of the holiday season. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly) Gridlock Season Is Here! And It Runs Through the Holidays! Gridlock Alert Days have begun this year, stretching from last week— the UN General Assembly, Sept. 22 to 26—and into the... News 26 Sep 2025 | 05:15
Governor Kathy Hochul has signed an executive order intended to boost access to COVID-19 vaccines. ( Photo: Courtesy of Governor Kathy Hochul ) Gov. Hochul Signs Order to Boost COVID-19 Vaccine Access Governor Kathy Hochul has signed an executive order that seeks to expand access to COVID-19 vaccines in New York State, she... News 19 Sep 2025 | 09:15
Artist’s rendering of the 125th Street entrance to the Second Avenue Subway. ( Photo: MTA) MTA Inks Contract to take 2nd Avenue Subway Farther Uptown Major work on the long-awaited expansion of the Second Avenue Subway is set to begin preliminary work next month after the... News 21 Aug 2025 | 07:53
New York Governor Kathy Hochul is pushing to pass a constitutional amendment to allow the state to redistrict in order to fight back against aggressive gerrymandering tactics that are underway in Texas. ( Photo: Governor Kathy Hochul Flickr) NYS’s Nonpartisan Mapping Process Makes Fight Against Texas Tougher New York has used an Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC) to draw congressional and legislative lines since 2014, when... Voices 10 Aug 2025 | 03:23
Despite efforts by the Trump Administration to derail congestion pricing in the courts, the tolls have remained on. After six months, Gov. Kathy Hochul said it is meeting all its promised traffic reduction goals. ( Photo: Ralph Spielman) Six Months In, Congestion Pricing Shows Early Signs of Success New York City’s congestion pricing program, launched in January 2025, is already reshaping how people move through Manhattan.... News 08 Jul 2025 | 11:33
A congestion-pricing tolling device looms over Third Avenue at 60th Street for now, but will it remain? US DOT Secretary Sean Duffy wants it removed immediately, as the MTA and NY State are relying on the courts to make sure it remains. Whatever decision is made should come relatively soon. ( Photo: Ralph Spielman) Deadline Passes and Congestion Pricing Tolls Keep on Clicking . . . For Now The third federal deadline to take down the congestion-pricing tolls has passed and still the tolls remain. It could come... News 23 May 2025 | 07:27
People enter and leave Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, May 22, 2025. ( Photo: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY) House Budget Bill Deals Big Blows to New York This story was originally published by THE CITY. Sign up to get the latest New York City news delivered to you each morning.... Voices 23 May 2025 | 02:06
The Robert F. Kennedy-Triborough Bridge on the UES is one of seven bridges and tunnels operated by the MTA that will install construction-zone cameras if the proms is approved by the MTA board. ( Photo: Ralph Spielman ) MTA Bridges and Tunnels May Add Cameras to Catch Speeders in Construction Zones Summer is coming up in a few weeks and the fines that have been levied for speeding in construction zones over the past years... News 16 May 2025 | 04:49
Students in a statistics class at New Heights Academy Charter School in Harlem store their phones in pouches at the back of the classroom on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. A statewide cellphone ban will take effect this fall. ( Photo: Amy Zimmer / Chalkbeat) NY’s School Cellphone Ban: Exemptions, Enforcement, and Costs Explained Under a cellphone policy, announced last week as part of the budget deal between Governor Kathy Hochul and the state legislature,... News 14 May 2025 | 05:01
Fare evasion costs the MTA $700 million a year, and the MTA says the problem is worst on buses where an estimated 40 percent skip out on paying the fare. ( Photo: Ralph Spielman) MTA Gets Full Funding as Hochul Finalizes Budget, but It Counts on Feds Paying All of Penn Costs April 28 saw an early-evening update from Gov. Kathy Hochul about the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and it was the... News 03 May 2025 | 09:40
Some state and local officials were coming up with plans on how to spend the money that the MTA could save now that the federal government is taking over the rebuilding of Penn Station. But the Trump administration is now saying they don’t plan to foot the entire bill. ( Photo: MTA) Not So Fast: Trump Admin Says It’s Not Footing Entire Cost to Renovate Penn Station When the Trump administration seized control of plans to renovate Penn Station, Gov. Hochul said New Yorkers had won a major... News 28 Apr 2025 | 12:20
Congestion pricing tolls on Second Ave. and E. 60th St.–and all tolls charging (most) vehicles $9 to enter lower Manhattan during peak hours–remain operational, despite the Trump administration seeking to force Gov. Hochul and the MTA to turn them off on April 20. ( Photo: Patricia Walsh) Congestion Tolls Stay On, Feds Threaten Highway Funds Congestion pricing tolls are still being collected, the MTA says, after the federal government sought to unilaterally shut... News 21 Apr 2025 | 05:08
The federal government wants to take over the long-stalled Penn Station redevelopment plan, taking over from the MTA. ( Photo: Keith J. Kelly) Feds Take Over Penn Station Renovation Plan The Trump administration took over planning for the renovation and possible expansion of Penn Station, shoving the MTA aside... News 20 Apr 2025 | 07:30
Mayor Eric Adams shakes hands with the Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy before embarking on a two stop subway “tour” on the B Line on April 4. Duffy, who had earlier called the subway system a “shithole” apparently did not change his tune after the ride with hizzoner. ( Photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office) MTA’s Lieber Vs Trump’s Transport Sec Duffy On April 4, US Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy, rode our subway system on a mysterious ride with Mayor Eric Adams,... Voices 17 Apr 2025 | 03:18
