The Gateway Hudson Tunnel Project, a critical public works project underway in the Northeast Corridor, is being put at existential risk by a decision that is nothing more than bare-bones politics.
Infrastructure has long been considered a bipartisan issue, forcing ENR into a contentious lane we rarely travel. President Trump’s direct meddling in the freeze before declaring an end to federal funding for Gateway is surprising, not only because it disrupts an active project, but because he understands, explicitly and repeatedly, why stopping work midstream is unwise. In fact, he has said so when defending his own priorities.
Pushing ahead with construction of his new White House ballroom despite widespread public opposition, Trump cast any reversal as unrealistic and wasteful, writing that “there is no practical or reasonable way to go back,” before making the point: “IT’S TOO LATE!”.
His reasoning is sound, but not his only provenance—it’s too late to stop the Hudson Tunnel—making his assault on this national enterprise all the more outrageous.
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That’s billions and billions of dollars that Schumer has worked for 20 years to get. Tell him it’s over.
– President Donald Trump
Last fall, when federal payments were withheld and the project was reviewed, Trump made it clear that Gateway’s fate was not being decided on engineering or financial grounds. In the video, he described ending programs his administration “didn’t like,” highlighting projects long championed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). “It’s billions and billions of dollars that Schumer has worked for 20 years to get,” Trump said. “It’s over. Tell him it’s over.” The statement came after Democrats rejected a Republican stopgap bill to reopen the government during the record 43-day shutdown. The president’s language can only be understood as explicitly punitive.
The Hudson Tunnel is not a conceptual proposal or a discretionary add-on. Conceived after Superstorm Sandy flooded the 100-year-old North River Tunnel in 2012, the project passed environmental review, obtained federal approvals, executed binding grant and loan agreements, awarded major contracts and began ground work, with the tunnel now imminent. Gateway officials have warned that prolonged funding uncertainty forces contractors to plan for demobilization rather than execution, an investment that carries the risk of permanent schedule deviation and higher restart costs.
The service is targeting 2035, a timeline that reflects the scale and complexity of the business. Interrupting the project mid-run does not stop the clock. break it
Nor is Gateway a regional boon for the New York City area—it’s a national artery that carries roughly 200,000 commuters a day and sustains economic activity at the heart of the nation’s financial services industry. Their disruption affects far beyond New York and New Jersey, immediately affecting contractors, labor and suppliers across the country.
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A president who argues, correctly, that halting his own construction projects would be wasteful and irresponsible cannot credibly justify halting a much more consequential national megaproject for political retaliation. This is not oversight; it is gross negligence bordering on sabotage. It will effectively increase costs, delay delivery, and weaken confidence in the federal government’s commitment to execute the very projects it authorizes.
Contractors should not be forced to set a partisan risk price for federal procurement, nor should the government’s commitment depend on a test of loyalty. The Republican congressional majority, specifically their delegates from New York and New Jersey, must take immediate action. The President’s willful meddling must stop now.
