Hudson Tunnel funding frozen amid court fight

(The Center Square) — Construction on a $16.6 billion tunnel project under the Hudson River remains on hold as a federal appeals court considers a move by the Trump administration to freeze funding for the massive infrastructure. A federal judge on Friday ordered the Trump administration to restore funding pulled back by the U.S. Department of Transportation from the Gateway Development Commission's Hudson Tunnel Project between New York and New Jersey. But the Department of Justice appealed the ruling to the First Circuit Court of Appeals, and U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas on Monday gave the federal government until Thursday to release the funds while the appeal is being considered. Work at the project’s five job construction sites in New York and New Jersey ground to a halt on Friday and Gateway officials said they can't resume construction until the federal funding is restored. Nearly 1,000 workers have been laid off due to the freeze, the commission said. A lawsuit filed by