Judge rejects contractor's bid to halt Gateway Tunnel procurement
A federal judge has denied a request by New Jersey–based George Harms Construction Co. to pause bidding on a key Gateway Tunnel project contract, clearing the way for the Gateway Development Commission (GDC) to continue its procurement schedule. According to NJ.com, the ruling preserves the commission’s December 10 deadline for proposals on a 7,540-foot viaduct that will connect the new Hudson River tunnel to the Northeast Corridor mainline near Secaucus Junction.
The contractor and a union steelworker had sought a temporary restraining order, arguing that the project labor agreement (PLA) for the viaduct contract excluded the union representing Harms’ workforce and therefore prevented the company from competing. In her decision, U.S. District Court Judge Susan D. Wigenton rejected that claim, finding the plaintiffs had not demonstrated irreparable harm or shown that the PLA is exclusionary.
GDC welcomed the ruling, which allows the agency to advance procurement for what it describes as one of the Hudson Tunnel Project’s most critical components. The broader Gateway Program includes construction of two new rail tunnels beneath the Hudson River and rehabilitation of the existing 115-year-old tubes, NJ.com reported.
Judge Wigenton noted that the case closely mirrors a 2024 New Jersey Supreme Court decision involving Harms and the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission, in which the court upheld the use of a PLA that did not include Harms’ union. She wrote that the Gateway PLA similarly does not prevent Harms from submitting a bid and requires building trades unions to work with whichever contractor is selected.
The lawsuit stemmed from Harms’ protest after it was shortlisted earlier this year as one of four qualified bidders for the New Jersey Surface Alignment contract. With the injunction denied, GDC will continue toward awarding the viaduct contract as scheduled.
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