Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

Polly Trottenberg

Polly Trottenberg

  • City Transportation Commissioner on Managing the Streets, Expanding the Subway, & More

    Trottenberg de Blasio DOT

    Trottenberg, middle, with de Blasio, left (photo: NYC DOT)


    New York needs to rapidly build more subway stops, get people out of cars, rethink its approach to parking, and keep working to drive down historically low numbers of deaths due to vehicle crashes on city streets.

    So said New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner and MTA Board member Polly Trottenberg, appearing on a recent

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  • What's The [Data] Point? 202, with City Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg

    whats the data point


    What's The [Data] Point? Episode 68 -- 202, with City Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg [You can download What's The [Data] Point? wherever you get your podcasts, including on iTunes]

    polly trottenberg wtdp march 2019New York City Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg joined the podcast to discuss her tenure and approach to managing city streets and

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  • What About the Buses?

    governorandrewcuomo photo by marc a. hermann mta new york city transit

    (photo: Marc A. Hermann/MTA)


    Newly-minted MTA chief Joe Lhota held a press conference last week to announce a rescue plan for the city’s ailing subway system. The agenda includes signal fixes, maintenance work, new emergency response teams, and even rider communication shifts. Lhota’s blueprint comes with $800-plus million price tag, he said, which set off another round of feuding between Mayor de Blasio and Governor Cuomo about how much the city and

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  • Calls for Small & Large Fixes to City Congestion, Transit Woes

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    Cmsr Trottenberg, right (photos: John McCarten/City Council)


    The New York City Council Committee on Transportation held a hearing Monday to discuss sources of, and solutions to, traffic congestion in the city.

    City Council Member Ydanis Rodríguez, chair of the committee, began the hearing by lamenting New York City’s heavy traffic. “As most New Yorkers can tell you, our streets look like parking lots,” said Rodríguez, a Democrat from upper Manhattan. In addition to economic impediments and general inconvenience, the Council member framed

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  • De Blasio’s 'Piecemeal' Transportation Agenda

    de blasio subway

    Mayor de Blasio on the subway (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor’s Office)


    Announcing the next steps of his citywide ferry service initiative at a recent press conference, Mayor Bill de Blasio said he is pleased with what his administration has done to improve transit options for New Yorkers, but admitted that he hasn’t put forth a coherent, comprehensive transportation agenda.

    Though transit experts have praised some of de Blasio’s moves to expand the city’s transportation network, many have also criticized

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