Nope. I believe NYSDOT stopped sponsoring TRB trips for a lot of employees some years ago (about six?). What I heard was that it was determined that the value of the information at the conference was outweighed by the cost.
Some employees paid their own way to go; not sure of they still do (one that I knew of retired recently).
(personal opinion emphasized)
All state employees can go to TRB for free, but yes, you'd still have to pay for your food, lodging, transportation, etc. (For serious, if anyone would like to stay with us at any point, whether for TRB or any other reason, we are happy to host you!)
Yeah, the cost is why I haven't been since 2018. When I was a state employee and student I could go for free or get scholarships to go. My employer has the same reason as yours for not paying for me to go as a young professional, and it's not in my budget at this time to pay the admission even though I live so close and could get away with food and transportation pretty inexpensively. But, there's still transpocamp, which is only $53 if you happen to live here or be here for TRB! (which is a much more agreeable price to my employer!)