Construction has resumed at all sites of the Hudson Tunnel Project, but officials warn work could stall again if the Gateway Development Commission cannot continue to access federal funds.
The GDC said in a statement this week that workers have returned to all construction sites and that all of the construction activities that had been suspended have started again. Construction had been paused in late January after the U.S. Department of Transportation halted federal reimbursements tied to the project’s grants and loan agreements. The disbursements were suspended by the Trump administration in September 2025. The GDC and the states of New York and New Jersey sued the administration to resume the distribution of the contractually obligated funds.
More than $205 million was released after U.S. District Court Judge Jeannette Vargas ruled the USDOT must resume the payments under the project’s grant agreements. The administration has appealed the decision, and that appeal is pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
In January, project officials had warned that prolonged funding interruptions could jeopardize more than 1,000 construction jobs, and as many as 11,000 jobs over the life of the projects. While workers were back on the job, GDC said it would be forced to pause construction again in two to three months if the federal funding disbursements stop. Contract awards for the Hudson River Tunnel and New Jersey Surface Alignment contract remain on hold, the agency said.
“The Hudson Tunnel Project is the most urgent passenger rail project in the country, and GDC’s mission is to deliver it as soon as possible. Our workers are back, and we are moving full steam ahead across all our construction sites, but we will have no choice but to stop work again if the federal government does not continue to disburse the funds that are committed to the project,” GDC CEO Tom Prendergast said. “This project is too important to delay. That’s why we’re doing everything possible to regain consistent and predictable access to all our federal funding so we can keep our workers on the job and deliver the reliable, modern rail transit Americans deserve.”
GDC said it is focused on keeping the project moving forward. Since the beginning of the year, several parts of the project have been completed including the Tonnelle Avenue Bridge and Utility Relocation Project. Components of tunnel boring machines have arrived at construction sites and are being prepared for assembly and concrete placement for the tunnel floor, known as an invert slab, for the Hudson Yards Concrete Casing – Section 3 tunnel box, has been completed and the installation of the walls is in progress.