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Friday Headlines: 205 Million Reasons To Be Happy

Stopping New York's transportation goals is harder than it looks. Plus more news.
Friday Headlines: 205 Million Reasons To Be Happy
We hear they take cash and credit. Gateway Development Commision

The Trump administration’s attempts to withhold more than $200 million in funding for the Gateway Tunnel project fell flat on appeal on Thursday, and a federal judge ordered the White House to release the rest of the cash so the project could resume.

For all the threats and interference from the Trump White House over New York City-area transportation projects, it has a spotty win-loss record.

Congestion pricing isn’t going anywhere for all the lawyers thrown at it. The Second Avenue Subway has been slowed down by the Trump Administration, but hardly killed. The Interstate 81 Viaduct in Syracuse is still coming down after attempts to slow progress and federal grant clawbacks.

Obviously, the future is still unfolding, but for now, at least, Gateway is back on.

In other news:

  • Assembly Member Donna Lupardo endorsed Binghamton attorney Dan Norton to succeed her when she leaves office at the end of this term. (State of Politics)
  • Perhaps Albany itself is to blame? A dozen state lawmakers plan to retire after this session. (City & State)
  • The MTA’s fare-gating system is causing injuries as some riders get hit by the doors. (NY1)
  • New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani plans to announce the installation of an offset bus lane on the Bronx’s busiest route and a two-way protected bike lane on a stretch of road in Brooklyn notorious among cyclists. (The New York Times)
  • Poughkeepsie Councilman Daniel Atonna wants free buses in Dutchess County and pleaded with county legislators to eliminate fares. (Mid-Hudson News)
  • A Central New York school bus carrying student athletes home careened off the road into the snow. (The Syracuse Post-Standard)
  • The 363 Gateway Project, aiming to increase pedestrian accessibility in downtown Binghamton, will break ground later this year after receiving federal approval. (The Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin)
Photo of Austin C. Jefferson
Before becoming Albany Bureau Chief in late 2025, Austin C. Jefferson was a state politics reporter for City & State NY, covering state government, elections and major legislative debates. His reporting has also appeared in the Daily Freeman, Chronogram Magazine and The Legislative Gazette. Having grown up in the Hudson Valley, he's always happy to argue about where Upstate New York truly begins.

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