Trump Drops Legal Bid to Block $16 Billion NY-NJ Gateway Tunnel
The Trump administration ended its latest effort to block federal funding for the $16 billion Gateway tunnel project connecting New York and New Jersey, dropping an appeal of a court ruling against the US.
The government agreed to dismiss its challenge to a June ruling by a federal judge who said that withholding funds from the project “flagrantly” violates the law, according to court records.
“This is a big victory for millions of New Jersey commuters and for the nearly 100,000 jobs the Gateway Tunnel Project will create,” New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill said Friday. “The Trump Administration has tried, over and over again, to illegally stop the funding for the nation’s most urgent infrastructure project.”
The Gateway project is set to build a new two-track rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River and rehabilitate the existing North River Tunnel, which opened in 1910 and was damaged by Hurricane Sandy. About 200,000 people travel on the two tracks between Newark and New York Penn Station each day. The new tunnel is scheduled to open in 2035.
President Donald Trump’s administration froze Gateway funding in September 2025, putting construction at risk and leading New York and New Jersey to sue. Judge Jeannette Vargas temporarily blocked the attempt in February, allowing money to begin flowing again. She extended the ruling in June.
“We took them to court and we won for New Jerseyans,” Sherrill said.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
In a related lawsuit at the US Court of Federal Claims, the US and the Gateway Development Commission said Thursday that they wanted to halt the case for six months so they can “focus on settlement efforts.”
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