Trump appeals order to fund $16B Gateway project
By: David Sheparedson
Reuters
WASHINGTON - The Trump administration August 28 [2026] appealed a court order requiring it to make payments for the $16 billion Hudson River rail tunnel project after losing its latest bid to halt funding for the New Jersey-New York link.
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The project aims to build a new two-track commuter rail tunnel connecting Manhattan and New Jersey and then repair a century-old tunnel use by more than 200,000 travelers and 425 trains daily.
..... The funding dispute is the latest clash between the Trump administration and congressional Democrats over one of the nation's largest infrastructure projects. President Doanld Trump ahs said he opposes the tunnel, which received aobut $15 billion in federal sup;ort under former President Joe Biden.
..... The U.S. Transportation Department on October 1 [2025] abruptly stopped releasing grant funds for the project in the wake of a partial government shutdown. Trump blamed on congressional Democrats. A U.S. judge ordered the payments to resume in February. [2026]
..... Governor Mikie Sherrill dismissed the latest move by the Trump administration.
..... "The Sherrill administration has already won four times in court and restored funding for the nation's most urgent infrastructure projects," Sherrill spokesperson Sean Higgins said August 31. [2026] "Thousands of workers and 200,000 daily riders are relying on the Gateway Tunnel project, and Governor Sherrill will keep fighting Trump's illegal attempts to stop it."
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Trump said in October [2025] that he had terminated the project, citing its backing by U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, and concerns about potential cost overruns.
..... The Transportation Department, which did not immediately comment on August 28, [2026] said earlier that the freeze was to ensure compliance with rules barring improper sue of diversity, equity and inclusion policies in funding.
..... The existing tunnel, heavily damage by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, needs frequent emergency repairs that disrupt travel on the nation's most widely used passenger rail line.
..... Construction was briefly halted in February [2026] but resumed after the Trump administration released $235 million in funding it had withheld since October. [2025]
..... The Gateway Development Commission, which oversees the project for New York and New Jersey, has separately sued the transportation Department in the U.S. Court of Claims to ensure that the funds are not frozen.
..... Trump offered in January [2026] to unfreeze the funds in return for support from Democrats to rename Washington Dulles Airport and New York's Penn Station after him. Reuters reported Democrats criticized the suggestion.
..... Around $2 billion of the project's federal funding has been spent so far.
.... NorthJersey.com staff writer Katie Sobko contributed to this story.