Trump administration restores funding to Manhattan subway project after NY sues

Source: The Independent

Thursday 16 April 2026 19:07 EDT


The Trump administration has agreed to resume funding a key Manhattan subway project after New York officials sued. The U.S. Department of Transportation said in a federal court filing Thursday that it has completed its review of the Second Avenue subway line project, and will begin reimbursing state transit officials again for construction costs.

Janno Lieber, MTA's CEO, said the reversal means “long-awaited transit justice” will soon come to neighborhoods in upper reaches of Manhattan. The Second Avenue subway project is building new stations northward along Manhattan’s Upper East Side, bringing subway service to parts of the Harlem neighborhood. “It shouldn’t have taken seven months and a lawsuit to get here," he said in a statement.

The federal Department of Transportation said the agreement means taxpayers' “hard-earned dollars will not fund unconstitutional DEI initiatives,” referring to diversity, equity, and inclusion principles. The administration argued that use of DEI principles has led to soaring costs on federal projects and is unconstitutional. “This has always been about securing the best deal for the American taxpayer and ensuring their dollars are spent efficiently and fairly,” the agency said in a statement.

Spokespersons for the MTA didn't immediately respond to USDOT's claims, but during a federal court hearing in Washington on Thursday, the state agency argued that it was already in compliance with federal policies and that the funding should have never been withheld, The New York Times reported.

Read more: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/trump-manhattan-mta-upper-east-side-new-jersey-b2959470.html