Federal judge hearing arguments on challenges to NYC’s fee for drivers into Manhattan

New York’s first-in-the-nation plan to levy a hefty toll on drivers entering Manhattan is the focus of a legal battle playing out in federal court. A Manhattan judge is hearing arguments Friday in lawsuits brought by unionized public school teachers and other irate New Yorkers seeking to halt the $15 “congestion fee.” The lawsuits claim federal transportation officials approved the plan without proper scrutiny of its negative impacts. New York transit officials maintain they conducted extensive environmental reviews and have proposed mitigation plans to address any impacts. They plan to roll the fee out June 30.