City files lawsuit against U.S. Department of Transportation over Rail Trail funding cut

The city of Albuquerque has sued the federal government over the withdrawal of a $11.5 million grant for the construction of a 7-mile loop for pedestrians and cyclists around Downtown and Barelas.

The lawsuit was filed Friday in U.S. District Court for New Mexico against the Department of Transportation, Secretary Sean Duffy, the Federal Highway Administration and Administrator Sean McMaster.

The grant — which made up 30% of the Rail Trail’s total $39.5 million cost — was withdrawn by USDOT in early September as a grant agreement was still being ironed out. The department sent the city a letter dated Sept. 11 stating its reasoning: the project “runs counter to DOT’s priority of focusing DOT’s multimodal grant programs on projects that promote vehicular travel.”

The city of Albuquerque was awarded the RAISE, or Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, grant in 2022 during the Biden administration.

The lawsuit alleges that the Trump administration violated “the Administrative Procedure Act, portions of the U.S. Constitution and is an ultra vires agency action” — meaning exceeding the legal scope of its authority.

“Defendants’ actions exceed statutory authority, are contrary to law, and are arbitrary and capricious,” according to the lawsuit, which asks the court to declare the withdrawal of the grant as unlawful and vacate the withdrawal and award the city “its reasonable fees, costs, and expenses, including attorneys’ fees.”

The USDOT and FHA did not return a request for comment Saturday. An attorney for the defendants has not yet been assigned, according to online court records.

The lawsuit was filed days before the Albuquerque mayoral election, with incumbent Tim Keller trying to be the first consecutive three-term mayor, running against five challengers.

The city issued a news release announcing the lawsuit filing Saturday morning. In the release, Keller said, “This trail reflects our values and the community’s desire to invest in innovative, quality-of-life projects.”

The cuts have not stopped the project in its tracks, with the total budget coming from several funding sources.

A ribbon-cutting last week opened the first section of the Rail Trail, connecting the Sawmill area with Old Town. The Central Crossing portion of the trail, according to the city, is slated to open sometime next year.