Commissioner Polly Trottenberg speaks at the 167th CityLaw Breakfast. Image Credit: CityLand

On July 30, 2020, NYC DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg spoke at the 167th CityLaw Breakfast. Professor Ross Sandler, Director of the Center for New York City Law gave opening remarks and Dean Anthony W. Crowell gave closing remarks. This Breakfast was sponsored by ConEdison, Greenberg Traurig, and Verizon. Commissioner Trottenberg spoke on “NYCDOT & COVID-19: Response Challenges, Recovery Opportunities.” As in-person events are not feasible at this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this was the first virtual CityLaw Breakfast in the Center’s history.

Commissioner Trottenberg began by speaking about DOT’s projects and goals before the pandemic. In the months prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, DOT had been transforming the City’s transportation network with the Transportation Master Plan, the Better Buses Initiative, and the Green Wave. These plans would, among other things, improve bus operations and develop a citywide bike lane network. Commissioner Trottenberg said that when the pandemic hit New York, many of these plans were halted.

Commissioner Trottenberg described how DOT had to adjust its operations after the COVID-19 outbreak, including staggering shifts and adjusting work sites. She described how DOT helped meet the needs of a changing city during the pandemic, including opening streets for pedestrian access, expanding outdoor dining to help restaurants and providing emergency bike lanes as bicycle use increased across the city. Commissioner Trottenberg also praised the City’s partnership with Citibike, and said that nearly 400,000 trips were taken by 17,600 Citibike members since March 2020.

According to Commissioner Trottenberg, there have been no cuts to the DOT capital funding in the most recent Capital Plan yet, but that projects may be delayed as the City evaluates the ongoing economic situation. Commissioner Trottenberg discussed the challenges of prioritizing projects with a more restrained budget and possible reduced operations.

Commissioner Trottenberg then answered several questions from the audience about light rail, long term bicycle parking and changes to bus lanes to accommodate more socially distanced passengers.

For more information about some of the initiatives Commissioner Trottenberg discussed, view CityLand‘s prior coverage here.

To view the PowerPoint, click here.

To watch the video, click here.