Trump administration agrees to restore funding for Second Avenue subway project
The MTA sued the Trump administration for withholding $60 million in funding the NYC subway project along Second Avenue.
NEW YORK (WABC) -- On Thursday, officials in Washington did an about face and agreed to stop holding back $58 million for the expansion of the Second Avenue Subway.
New York got word of the turnaround just before both sides were set to go to federal court in Washington.
Right now, the MTA is working on Phase 2 to extend the Second Avenue line up to 125th Street.
"We took the Trump Administration to court after they illegally froze funding for the Second Avenue Subway," Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement. "Today, they backed down. The freeze is over. For East Harlem and every New Yorker who relies on our subways, release our money immediately."
MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said while it shouldn't have taken seven months and lawsuit to get there, the MTA can now confidently move forward with Phase 2.
"It shouldn't have taken seven months and a lawsuit to get here, but with the federal government's concession today on the courthouse steps, the MTA can now confidently forge ahead with Second Avenue Subway Phase 2," Lieber said. "The billion-dollar contract approved at our March Board meeting is being awarded and contractors are mobilizing right away."
And Sen. Charles Schumer also spoke out about the Trump administration's plans to release the money for the project.
"After a nonsensical and illegal delay by the Trump administration, which forced the MTA to take them to court, an appearance before the judge finally got them to come to their senses and lift this damaging funding blockade," Schumer said. "Now the transformative and long-needed extension of the Second Avenue Subway can get back on track to deliver new service to countless New York straphangers from East Harlem, Uptown, the Bronx, and beyond."
The East Harlem expansion is expected to be completed by 2032 and is part of a broader project estimated to cost billions, with a significant portion funded by the federal government.
SEE RELATED: MTA sues the Trump administration over Second Avenue subway funding
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