Gov. Kathy Hochul blasted the Trump administration’s move to rescind approval for New York City’s congestion pricing program on Wednesday, saying the MTA would keep its toll cameras on barring a court order.

In a letter sent to Hochul early Wednesday afternoon, the head of the U.S. Department of Transportation said the Federal Highway Administration was revoking its November stamp of approval for the tolling plan.

Speaking to reporters and transit advocates at a press conference in Manhattan hours later, Hochul said she was “very confident” a lawsuit filed by the MTA to block the move would be successful.

The agency brought its suit “within minutes” of getting the news, she said.

“The cameras are staying on. We’re keeping the cameras on,” the governor said, referring to the toll cameras that capture drivers’ license plate numbers. “Lights, cameras, action. They’re staying on.”

Hochul also pushed back against a message President Donald Trump posted to social media after the news broke, in which he declared that “CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD," adding: “LONG LIVE THE KING.”

“I’m here to say: New York hasn’t labored under a king in over 250 years, and we are not, we sure as hell are not going to start now,” she said, to cheers from the crowd. “The streets of this city, where battles were fought, we stood up to a king, and we won then."

“I don’t care if you love congestion pricing or hate it,” she added. “This is an attack on our sovereign identity, our independence from Washington.”

The rollout of congestion pricing has not been without its road bumps. Less than a month before the tolling program was initially supposed to launch this past June, Hochul temporarily pulled the plug on it, saying the $15 base fare would pose a financial burden for New Yorkers. 

Months later, in November, the governor said she would revive the plan with a reduced base fare of $9. The Federal Highway Administration, under the auspices of then-President Joe Biden, approved her proposal a little over a week later.

The MTA has said the toll is slated to increase to $12 from 2028 through 2030 before rising to $15 starting in 2031. 

Addressing the crowd after Hochul spoke, MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said the transit agency has already seen traffic-related improvements since congestion pricing took effect on Jan. 5.

Traffic was down 9% in January, with 1.2 million fewer vehicles entering the Central Business District in Manhattan, Lieber said, driving bus speeds “way up, particularly express buses.”

Lieber also touted the commercial benefits of congestion pricing, citing a 7% uptick in restaurant reservations in the congestion zone, as well as a “surge in pedestrian traffic.”

“Simple, simple situation: New York ain’t going back. We tried gridlock for 60 years. It didn’t work. It cost our economy billions,” he said. “But you know what’s helping our economy, what’s making New York a better place? Congestion pricing.”

The MTA’s lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, argues the U.S. Department of Transportation’s move to cancel the tolling program comes “in open disregard of a host of federal statutes and regulations.”

The suit, Lieber said, “says, number one, we’re seeking a declaratory judgment that this is not proper, and number two, we’re not turning off the tolls until there’s an order.”

“It’s mystifying that after four years of environmental study, a 4,000-page environmental review, that the U.S. DOT would seek to reverse course,” he said.

“We’re doing exactly what the federal government asked of New York and everybody: We’re doing a thoughtful, local solution,” he added. “I thought the Republican Party was in favor of local control.”

Asked if she believed Trump was trying to hurt New York City, Hochul answered without hesitation.

“I said that I think our commuters are the roadkill on his revenge tour,” she said. “Yes, I do.”