NYC DOT Commish Ydanis Rodríguez is staying ‘laser-focused’

New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodríguez is touting New York City’s bike infrastructure accomplishments as a climate justice solution. Speaking at a panel at City & State’s transportation summit on Thursday, he got applause when he described a $27 million federal grant to build e-bike charging stations near NYCHA buildings. (That project, announced in June 2023, is slow-going.) Rodríguez also emphasized DOT’s progress in expanding contracts with minority- and women-owned businesses, saying he’s raised the percentage of MWBE contracts with DOT up to 32% from 9%.

In a moment of extreme turmoil in the Eric Adams administration, Rodríguez has been a steady ally. He has remained in his role for Adams’ entire term so far, and he was apparently the only commissioner to stand by the mayor’s side at a recent rally of clergy leaders in support of him at City Hall. 

Rodríguez has not been touched by the multiple state and federal investigations into the mayor and his inner circle, and he has a clear directive from the mayor not to be distracted, he told City & State. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

The McGuinness Boulevard redesign is going forward. We're getting the (protected) bike lanes. There was a lot of back and forth, and the city just reversed course to say, actually, “OK, we are going to reduce the number of lanes of cars.” Can you give a little bit more detail on what was the thinking there? I know advocates are really excited. The local Assembly member is really excited. So what went into making that decision?

Yesterday, as I was at the press conference, with Assembly members and council members, myself, and Chief Rivera for the NYPD doing the ribbon-cutting of the first change of signal to 20 miles per hour, I also highlighted the important role of Transportation Alternatives, Family for Safe Streets, all advocates. Mayor Adams has said, there’s going to be sometimes easy projects, but there's also going to be some complex projects, and sometimes there's going to be a strong opinion on different sides. As someone that in my 12 years (in the City Council), I worked with the advocates to make the city safer for pedestrians and cyclists. I'm happy that we've been able now to keep moving forward the McGuinness Boulevard, and I want to focus on delivering a good redesign for the cyclists and those who walk on that road.

Is it a little bit of a sigh of relief that a decision has been made?

I'm happy that we’re moving forward, but I also recognize that no other city is doing the job that we are doing. When anyone, myself, or any deputy commissioner or assistant commissioner, we go to conferences across the nation, everyone is stopping us asking, “How are you doing that? How do you have more bus lanes than any other city? How do you have the largest and the best dining out program that we have in the city? How you have been able to be the first city widening the bike lanes, not only for the regular cyclists, but also for those that use the infrastructure to deliver the food and orders. So there's always going to be projects that, you know, it will be complex, and I'm happy that we are moving forward in McGuinness Boulevard, but there's so many other projects that we have. We look into other communities where we also have to continue doing more bus lanes and bike lanes. Our mission, as an agency, is to organize our streets in a way that people and goods are moved safe and efficient.

And how are you feeling about the turmoil impacting the administration right now? Is it impacting morale in your department or your ability to do your job?

Mayor Adams has been very clear, and also the Deputy Mayor (Meera) Joshi, all commissioners should be focusing on being laser-focused on the job, and that's why – for me, I don't think that there's another city that has the level of quality members of the executive team in an agency that’s running local transportation, as we have in New York City. So we’re standing on the shoulders of the previous commissioner. The level of retention that we have at DOT, in my executive team, is more, on average, more than 10 years. So every day, every day, we attract new individuals that they want to work at DOT. DOT is the most exciting place where anyone would like to work. So I'm just focusing on bike lanes, bus lanes, freight, electric chargers, electric vehicles, so we don't have time to be distracted. And as the mayor said, everyone must be laser focused.

And you've been there the whole time. You're one of the top people who stayed since the very beginning.

Well, I also served in previous administrations. I served my first four years (in the City Council) with Bloomberg. There was investigation in that administration … I served under de Blasio on the council. There was an investigation there. And people come and go. What I can tell you is speaking what I know about the mayor, someone that I met in 1989 when I was a student activist and he was a transit police and after working went there to support us so that we will not be arrested, someone that I worked with when he was a captain, member of the (100 Blacks in Law Enforcement) and I was a teacher, someone that I see right now that to this agency, this city, where crime was up, where people didn't want to go out, where unemployment was so high, I can talk about what I have seen with this mayor. And that's why for me as someone that did my 12 years as a council member, and I ended at this office, always focused on dignity, honesty and transparency. I just focus on my job. And Mayor Adams has been very clear: All commissioners, keep laser-focused on your job.