A judge has lifted an injunction against the city's plan to allow only buses and trucks on a portion of 14th Street, allowing the Department of Transportation to implement the plan.

The judge's ruling was announced Tuesday afternoon.

The city planned to ban almost all cars from 14th Street between Third and Ninth avenues starting on July 1 in an effort to speed up bus commutes.

It was designed to coincide with what was supposed to be a complete shutdown of L train service in Manhattan for repair work related to Hurricane Sandy damage.

However, the L train repair work plan was altered earlier this year to allow for limited service, rather than a complete shutdown. That led opponents to question whether the plan to restrict cars on 14th Street was still necessary.

A judge initially issued a temporary injunction to halt the plan on June 29, just two days before it was scheduled to go into effect. That injunction was the one lifted on Tuesday, when a judge ruled that the city's Department of Transportation does have the authority to make changes to 14th Street.

Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted after the decision was announced, saying that the Department of Transportation is now moving ahead with final roadwork.

 

 

In response to the judge's decision, an attorney for the plan's opponents said the judge did not explain why the restrictions needed to extend from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. when the DOT said bus speed problems were only between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m., and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. He also said the judge allowed the DOT to say they took "sufficient consideration of environmental factors, without any proof."

It is unclear at this time when the plan will go into effect.