A Texas charter bus company sued by New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ administration over migrant costs has agreed to stop transporting people from the southern border into and around the city, court documents revealed on Wednesday.
Roadrunner Charters Inc. has reached an agreement with the Adams administration to stop busing migrants to New York, New Jersey and other nearby locations while the case is pending before the state Supreme Court in Manhattan. The company signed a letter that said:
“The Defendant Roadrunner Charters Inc. will refrain forthwith from transporting individuals known as migrants from Texas to New York City, and/or from Texas to the vicinity of New York City.”
The lawsuit, filed by the New York Department of Social Services, alleged that 17 companies, including Roadrunner Charters, violated New York State law by failing to pay for migrant care. The lawsuit seeks $708 million in damages.
The lawsuit cites a New York law that requires anyone who brings a “needy person” from another state for the purpose of making him or her socially useful to either remove him or her from the state or house him or her.
In a statement, Adams said he was “pleased” that Roadrunner Inc. agreed to stop transporting migrants to the Big Apple in an “attempt to overwhelm our shelter system.” He noted:
“New York City continues to do our part as we lead the nation in managing this national humanitarian crisis, but reckless political games from the state of Texas will not be tolerated. I am pleased to see that Roadrunner — one of the bus companies we sued for taking part in Texas Governor [Greg] Abbott’s scheme to transport tens of thousands of migrants to our city in an attempt to overwhelm our shelter system and shift costs to New York City — has agreed to halt the bussing of migrants into and around New York City while the lawsuit proceeds. We call on all other bus companies involved in this suit to do the same.”
Adams filed the lawsuit in January, calling the migrant transport a “reckless political ploy.”
“New York City has and will always do our part to manage this humanitarian crisis, but we cannot bear the costs of reckless political ploys from the state of Texas alone. Today, we are taking legal action against 17 companies that have taken part in Texas Governor Abbott’s scheme to transport tens of thousands of migrants to New York City in an attempt to overwhelm our social services system. Governor Abbott’s continued use of migrants as political pawns is not only chaotic and inhumane but makes clear he puts politics over people. Today’s lawsuit should serve as a warning to all those who break the law in this way.”
