Within hours following New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s resignation from office after a slew of sexual harassment accusations, Port Authority workers issued a letter to executive director Rick Cotton calling for the termination of the former governor’s controversial LaGuardia AirTrain proposal. 

An excerpt from the letter, according to the New York Daily News, reads: “For too long, Gov. Cuomo and his staff have repeatedly pushed the agency to make non-transparent, politically motivated decisions, including decisions that squander the trust and money of our bondholders, customers, and the general public.” The letter also calls for the Port Authority Inspector General to examine whether Cuomo tried to unfairly influence the federally-mandated environmental impact statement process to approve the plan despite other alternatives and the protests of transit experts. 

Just last month, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved the estimated $2.1 billion project, which would see the construction of a 1.5-mile transit link connecting LaGuardia Airport to a station at Willets Point in Queens. For years, this initiative has caught backlash for a variety of reasons, including its staggering price, disregard for cheaper alternatives, indirect route, and environmental impact on the communities the rail line would intersect. 

Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, who will assume the vacated governor's office, will have to take on Cuomo’s incomplete multibillion-dollar infrastructure projects, which also include the Empire Station Complex. This $3 billion redevelopment plan includes the renovation of Penn Station and the James A. Farley post office. According to the Commercial Observer, transportation advocates expect Hochul to take a more collaborative approach to infrastructure projects that involve more stakeholders. 

“Gov. Cuomo has been willing to impose himself on projects, and I get the sense that Gov. Hochul will seek to hear varying points of views and look for more equitable ways to move forward,” said Renae Reynolds, executive director of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, a transportation advocacy group. “Hochul should understand who the advocates are, what their perspectives are, and the ways the initiatives around infrastructure have left some communities behind.”

In terms of the LaGuardia AirTrain, the Port Authority board has not yet approved contracts for the project, however, prior to Cuomo’s departure, the governor planned a ribbon-cutting event to announce the start of construction.