Dive Brief:
The Federal Highway Administration on Friday approved the public release of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s environmental assessment of its plan to toll most passenger vehicles entering commercial districts in the Manhattan borough of New York City, paving the way for its final approval.

In a letter, the FHWA informed the MTA that it conditionally approved the plan after reviewing all public comments on the Central Business District Tolling Program’s final environmental assessment and an analysis carried out by the MTA, the New York State Department of Transportation and the New York City Department of Transportation.

“The FHWA is now poised to issue a Finding of No Significant Impact, the federal environmental approval which will allow the state to move forward with congestion pricing program design and adoption,” said Mary Barber, state director of New York and New Jersey for the Environmental Defense Fund, in a statement.