The MTA has already filed suit in an attempt to thwart the Trump administration from pulling the plug on New York City’s immensely unpopular congestion pricing scheme — as a noisy contingent of pols and advocates backing the toll piled on with their own saber-rattling.

In a statement issued less than an hour after US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sent a letter putting Gov. Kathy Hochul on notice, MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber praised the toll scheme and vowed to fight back against the administration’s “baseless effort.”

“Today, the MTA filed papers in federal court to ensure that the highly successful program — which has already dramatically reduced congestion, bringing reduced traffic and faster travel times, while increasing speeds for buses and emergency vehicles — will continue notwithstanding this baseless effort to snatch those benefits away from the millions of mass transit users, pedestrians and, especially, the drivers who come to the Manhattan Central Business District,” Lieber said in a statement.

The suit, filed Wednesday in Manhattan federal court, names Duffy and Federal Highway Administration Executive Director Gloria Shepherd, as well as their respective agencies — and touted enacting congestion pricing as having “embarked on a bold new program” to reduce congestion and promote mass transit.

“It’s mystifying that after four years and 4,000 pages of federally supervised environmental review — and barely three months after giving final approval to the Congestion Relief Program — USDOT would seek to totally reverse course,” Lieber’s statement concluded.

The first-in-the-nation plan, which charges drivers $9 to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street, went into effect in early January.

Duffy said in his letter to Hochul that the feds would work with New York state on an “orderly termination” of the tolls, but it was not immediately known when the $9 tax would cease being collected.

“CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!” Trump, who previously vowed to kill the toll, posted on Truth Social.

In her own statement coming soon after Trump’s social media missive, Hochul — who has herself wavered about congestion pricing — lauded the tax hike and expressed support for the MTA’s legal filing.

“Since this first-in-the-nation program took effect last month, congestion has dropped dramatically and commuters are getting to work faster than ever. Broadway shows are selling out and foot traffic to local businesses is spiking,” Hochul said, baselessly claiming “support for this program is growing every day.”

Then in a direct shot across the bow at the president — with whom she’s scheduled to meet with in Washington, DC this week — she added, “We are a nation of laws, not ruled by a king. The MTA has initiated legal proceedings in the Southern District of New York to preserve this critical program. We’ll see you in court.”

Hochul was far from the only New York pol to condemn Trump and praise congestion pricing.

State Sen. Andrew Gounardes sounded off in a statement, claiming the president’s move will make him “directly responsible for more traffic, more crashes, more polluted air, slower buses and less funding for our transit system.”

He blasted the administration’s decision as “ridiculous” and “backwards,” calling congestion pricing a “successful program” which pulling the plug on will “hurt all New Yorkers.”

“My message to the President? We will fight this decision and we will see you in court.”

Congressman Jerry Nadler (NY-12) slammed the DOT for its decision, calling the department’s arguments “utterly baseless and frankly, laughable” in a statement, and questioning the administration’s legal authority to wind down the program.

“I firmly believe that there is no legal basis for the President to unilaterally halt this program. The Value Pricing Program is solidly established under federal law, and its approval cannot be arbitrarily revoked, especially when it is clearly delivering tangible benefits. Mr. President, we’ll see you in court.”

Straphangers advocacy group Riders Alliance Executive Director Betsy Plum claimed in a statement that congestion pricing has benefitted public transit riders, and pledged to fight back against the administration’s actions.

“We organized for a decade, held two governors accountable, and prevailed in court in three states after years of exhaustive environmental studies. We are committed to maintaining and expanding on our victory and will defend it with everything we have,” she wrote.

Follow along with The Post's coverage of Manhattan's new congestion pricing

• New York became the most expensive city to drive in when its congestion pricing began Sunday. New Yorkers now must pay $9 to drive below 60th Street during peak hours.
• Some drivers have begun concealing their plates in an effort to avoid the toll. Some residents of the area are saddled with the cost whenever they want to take their car out.

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• Businesses, like funeral homes, have begun shifting the cost to customers. Rideshare app Lyft raised its CitiBike prices for New Yorkers hoping to avoid taking a car. The FDNY union and EMT union claim that congestion pricing will slow down their response times, as well.
• Many New Yorkers are skeptical about congestion pricing’s effects, especially after multiple publicized crimes on the subway in recent weeks. Drivers are expected to dump their cars above the zone, making parking more difficult uptown.

Michael Gerrard, a Columbia Law School professor and congestion pricing supporter, said he didn’t believe the feds could legally kill the program. 

“The Federal Highway Administration approved congestion pricing and allowed it to start up. It has survived several court challenges. It’s not at all clear that they can legally revoke the approval now. This new decision is likely to be back in court before long, and meanwhile the tolls will probably stay in place unless a judge rules otherwise,” he told The Post.

His statement was echoed by Arthur Schwartz, an attorney who was part of the legal team which sued the governor over her sudden “pause” of congestion pricing in June — which Hochul reversed after the November elections. 

“The excuse given by the secretary of transportation that he ‘disagrees’ with the prior Transportation Secretary’s interpretation of the law, does not give him the right to tear up an agreement which was properly developed under federal law and regulations,” he said.

Other attorneys who had sued to reverse Hochul’s congestion pricing pause agreed.

“The federal government signed a contract with the City and State to allow congestion pricing. It’s a contract like any other. The government can’t walk away from a written agreement just because there is a new Administration in power,” said Andrew G. Celli, Jr., a lawyer for The City Club of New York.

“We applaud the MTA for bringing this suit. A deal is a deal — and the MTA has the right to enforce it in court.”

— Additional reporting by Peter Senzamici, Ben Kochman, Haley Brown and Steven Nelson