New York State DOT

Coming two days after her confirmation as the new commissioner of the state DOT, Joan McDonald's keynote speech at today's annual meeting of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council offered her the chance to lay out her agenda for statewide transportation policy. McDonald's remarks should provide cause for optimism among New Yorkers hoping for a more progressive transportation system: She strongly endorsed smart growth principles and indicated to Streetsblog after her speech that she welcomes the planning process that could advance the Sheridan Expressway teardown.

Public-private partnerships, or P3s, have been repeatedly held up as a way for New York and other states to replace crumbling infrastructure despite enormous budget deficits. The Port Authority recent announced that it will use a P3 to finance the new Goethals Bridge, an important development that's sure to be closely watched by the state's transportation officials.

With a new administration at the state DOT, now is a critical moment for the fight to tear down the under-used Sheridan Expressway and turn the area into new housing, jobs, and public space. Tonight, bring your questions and ideas to a town hall hosted by the South Bronx River Watershed Alliance.

Though New York is the least car-dependent state in the country, the state DOT isn't known for championing for the state's millions of non-drivers. In some corners of the large and decentralized agency, however, progressive ideas have taken root and new programs are being developed. At yesterday's Rudin Center conference on livability, two DOT officials embraced the state's extremely ambitious climate plan and outlined a course to expand the state's much-praised GreenLITES certification system. The challenge for new DOT commissioner Joan McDonald will be to embrace the good thinking already coming from within the department and turn it into statewide policy.

“By building more and more roads, we have made it almost impossible to solve our transportation problems”

Joan McDonald will serve as the next commissioner of the state Department of Transportation, Governor Cuomo announced this morning (after the General Contractors Association spilled the beans in its own press release praising the pick).

Andrew Cuomo has been governor for all of three days, but even his small first actions could have big implications. With the state's massive deficit looming, Cuomo won't be able to avoid tough choices and big fights, and transportation is very much in the crosshairs. Bigger news could come as early as Wednesday, when Cuomo announces his emergency financial plan -- in which he could announce raids on the MTA's dedicated finances in the hundreds of millions -- but already a picture of this year's agenda is beginning to emerge.

New York State might be home to more transit riders than any other state, but when it comes to the transportation policies on the books, we don't look quite so green.

Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch opens his new report on transportation funding in his characteristically blunt fashion: