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Brian Lehrer: Brian Lehrer on WNYC. Yes, we're five days away now from the new Mayor, Eric Adams', administration, which means, among all the other positions, the City will have a new Department of Transportation Commissioner, an increasingly important slot in New York City. Adams announced that appointment last week on West 49th Street by Rockefeller Center.

Mayor Eric Adams: I'm proud to announce another group of history-makers that I'm extremely proud of, and one of them is Ydanis Rodriguez. Ydanis is going to become the commissioner of the DOT. First Latino to become the commissioner of DOT.

That is a significant moment because far too often, the abilities and skills that Ydanis has shown as a former council member and a leader on Safe Streets, expanding bike lanes, pedestrian plazas, and what he has shown as being a voice for the voiceless in so many areas. It was his vision to have Car Free Day and the expansion of the City Bike program into underserved neighborhoods and communities. This is what Ydanis is going to bring to the table.

Brian Lehrer: Ydanis Rodriguez, the City Council member from Upper Manhattan, who is also the Chair of the City Council Transportation Committee, steps into the position at a tense time with an ongoing street fight, or fight for the streets, you might say, between cars, bikers, pedestrians, restaurants, scooters, e-bikes versus regular bikes, everything else. The city has also seen traffic fatalities rise the past three years with deaths this year surging to at least 265, the highest level in almost a decade.

That number includes over 100 pedestrians and cyclists despite the Vision Zero effort by Mayor de Blasio. Rodriguez also steps into a job at a time when the city is set to receive a windfall of federal funding with billions of dollars coming to the city over the next five years from the bipartisan infrastructure bill that President Biden signed in November that will present opportunities, but also choices to make.

Joining us now to discuss all this and his new job, we are delighted to have Ydanis Rodriguez, the incoming Department of Transportation Commissioner. Councilman, welcome back to WNYC, and congratulations.

Ydanis Rodriguez: Good morning, Brian.

Brian Lehrer: Now, at your introductory press conference, you said the city is, "Facing a pandemic of unsafe streets." Mayor de Blasio promised the city that he would make the streets safer, and for a few years there, fatalities were going down. Can you turn this around?

Ydanis Rodriguez: We can. It's all about having the will, and now, we have the vision of Mayor Eric Adams of a more reliable, sustainable, equitable transportation system, and we're ready to start from day one. Many of those initiatives that we're going to be working around were the results of bills that I sponsored when I've been chairing this Committee of Transportation. At the council, we passed a bill that now mandates DOT to use a master plan to redesign all danger intersection following Vision Zero.

We already know that 60% of the crashes in New York City are happening in intersections. The data also say that 50% of those individuals who die in the intersections, they are senior citizens.

What are we waiting for? We will be working with the best thing that we have in New York City DOT, to work with the engineer, and to look for ideas and suggestion in the academic and private sector. Go to over there and say, "Let's reduce the speed limit when drivers turn, let's be sure that we redesign the intersection," and let's be sure that all drivers, including myself, should know that for the 8.6 million New Yorkers, only 1.4 million has vehicle. More than 80% of New Yorkers rely on public transportation. They are pedestrians, they're cyclists, and we need to do policy thinking about that.

Brian Lehrer: Listeners, we can take some phone calls for the incoming New York City Transportation Commissioner, Ydanis Rodriguez, 212-433-WNYC, 212-433-9692. No matter what form of transportation you use, no matter how you use the streets of New York, you are invited to call in, 212-433-9692 or tweet @brianlehrer. I watched on video after the fact, Councilman-- I'm going to call you, Commissioner, okay? I'm just going to call you Commissioner now because we're going to assume that five days from now, the world will still be here and you're actually going to get inaugurated.

I'm just going to start calling Eric Adams the Mayor now. We can put Mayor-elect aside, he's Mayor Adams. Mayor de Blasio is still Mayor de Blasio, but Eric Adams is Mayor Adams, as far as I'm concerned. I watched the video of your introductory remarks when Mayor Adams introduced you the other day and you talked about being a Transportation Commissioner for the working class.

I wonder if you could expand on that and expound on that, including what that means for drivers because you touted expanding protected bike lanes, and yet, it feels like we need seven lanes on every street now. One for cars, one for scooters, one for e-bikes, one for regular bikes, one for pedestrians, one for outdoor dining structures, and one for parking. Space is limited, of course, and drivers are increasingly feeling like the city government doesn't care about them, and drivers, in many cases, the people who have to drive in the city are working-class people. How do you square that?

Ydanis Rodriguez: The streets belong to everyone, and this is about changing the culture. The street doesn't belong only to car owners. I think that this is something that we had to change. We're going to do it by educating everyone-- drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, those of you that board a taxi. I think it's about understanding that, first of all, climate change is real, that we lived from Katrina to Sandy, to Maria, to a snowstorm.

That there's things that we can control, that too many cars industry mean that we contaminate our environments, that we don't have enough space. We have the modernest city in the whole nation, and I think that we have to work with the urban planning and look on how we can take more cars out of the streets, but it's not looking at the drivers as enemy. I think it is important to have sharing services in car. I think that Liberty Taxi, Yellow Taxi, Black Car also play a role in our society but when a driver is behind a wheel, he or she is incurring something that weighs tons of pounds that can kill people.

None of those 360 individuals that we lost this year, the highest numbers in 2013 in the City of New York, was a cyclist. One of those that I went, yesterday, to stand with the family at 61st and 3rd Avenue, another family that I went to the funeral at 191st and Grand Concourse where a 30-year-old lost his life as a result of a crash as he was a delivery worker. I think that the most important is that we all should know the streets belong to the working class, belong to the middle class, and to the upper class.

I think that what I bring, in my role as a commissioner, and, again, always carry on the vision of Mayor Eric Adams who is determined to put more investment in our infrastructure, to change 50% of those temporary bike protected lane to a permanent infrastructure-- We're going to be sending the message to all New Yorkers, cyclists live matter, working-class live matter, most of those crisis also happening on those community.

For me, it's about giving the same attention to all New Yorkers, making sure that we bring the necessary infrastructure investment to make transportation safer to everyone. Again, I'm going to be targeting intersections because that's where we have more than 60% of the crisis every year in New York City.

Brian Lehrer: Listeners, I told you I'll give you the link, or the web address, I should say, if you want to submit the best photo sitting on your phone for our Best Photo Sitting on Your Phone 2021 contest, and it's wnyc.org/mybestphoto2021, wnyc.org/mybestphoto2021. Send the best photo sitting on your phone our way. Chris in Greenpoint, you're on WNYC with the incoming Transportation Commissioner, outgoing City Council member, Ydanis Rodriguez. Hi, Chris.

Chris: Good morning, Brian, how're you doing?

Brian Lehrer: Okay.

Chris: I'll follow your lead and say good morning, Commissioner Rodriguez, as well.

Ydanis Rodriguez: Morning.

Chris: Just real quickly, I wanted to say that along with infrastructure for bikes, pedestrians, et cetera, without enforcement for people parking in bike lanes or even on sidewalks, they're useless. I'm wondering if there's a plan, going forward, to make sure that the NYPD does their job and enforces these sorts of violations that seem simple but can add up to real injury and often, death. Thanks.

Ydanis Rodriguez: Definitely, enforcement is one of those tools that we have that we should use. Beside enforcement, which I will coordinate with the police departments, we also had to build more permanent bike protected lanes. We also had to build more, both dedicated lanes, having more SBS, Select Bus Services, having more BRT, Bus Rapid Transit, and to be sure, also, that we redesign our intersections.

Brian Lehrer: Thank you for your call, Chris. You just mentioned the Bus Rapid Transit, that was another thing I noticed from your introductory remarks when Mayor Adams introduced you as his pick for Transportation Commissioner.

I wonder if you could go into that because, as you know, the MTA runs the buses and the subways, not the city. That's an eternal source of frustration for mayors and transportation commissioners in the city, that they really don't have control over the buses and the subways. You touted buses as being very important for essential workers and other working-class New Yorkers, so what is in your power as Transportation Commissioner?

Ydanis Rodriguez: We have a lot of power because, first of all, we will be coordinating with the New York City Transit Team with whom, already, we have started communication, and we're going to be working with MTA. The time when the City and the State been fighting for so long will be over with Eric Adams and the current Governor, Kathy Hochul. It will translate into agencies being more coordinated, but also, as it's true that the MTA run the buses, the city is the one who run the infrastructure.

The city is the one that run the bus shelters, the city is the one that run the lighting, the signal system. With our agency, DOT, with the leadership with Mayor Eric Adams, and at the State level with Governor Kathy Hochul and the MTA, we will see the level of coordination that we have not seen before between the City of New York to be sure that we deliver the best bus services to all New Yorkers.

I think that, again, it is the city DOT who work to build the bus lane. It is the New York City DOT who also run the signal system. We will work expanding the initiative to have a light signal system in a way that it will give priority to busses. No one should be in front of the bus when the bus go through, and enforcement will be key too.

Brian Lehrer: Let me read you a question that we got from a listener via Twitter. The question is, "What does Ydanis think about enforce--," and I call you Commissioner, I guess this listener thinks they're on a first-name basis with you. That's okay. "What does Ydanis think about enforcement of the new SLEEP Act which prohibits and stiffens penalties for muffler modifications?" I live uptown, you live uptown, so you've heard it plaguing our neighborhoods, and I know people are experiencing this around the city. I think it's getting a little better now, but at the beginning of the pandemic, it was really bad.

The question is, "What do you think about enforcement of the new SLEEP Act which prohibits and stiffens penalties for muffler modifications? What's in his power?" This listener asks.

Ydanis Rodriguez: As you know, we stand in a press conference the month before Mayor Adams won the general election at [unintelligible 00:14:33] and Broadway, together with Congressman Espaillat, Assemblymember Jose Serrano, and other elected officials as we address the quality-of-life issue that also are related to some vehicles out of control, so those, also, that are producing the noise in our city.

This is about treating and looking at all community the same. What is allowed or is not allowed in the Upper East Side should not be allowed or be allowed in the underserved community. We believe that in the City of New York, from Northern Manhattan to the rural Brooklyn, Staten Island, or Queens, we have a lot of New Yorkers, especially senior citizens, that they should know are exposed to the level of noise that we have.

Enforcement will be important, but we also need to look at-- and this is a priority for me since day one, to see how we can coordinate it with the NYPD and see what is possible, but also, when it comes to everything related to transportation or to anything, my idea, my approach is that we will be working with the Transportation Authority, with Families for Safe Streets, with the rest of the colleagues at the state and the city level. Go to Albany, and ask Albany, "Let's pass a bill that will give the City of New York all the power that we should have to legislate everything related to transportation."

Brian Lehrer: Another listener asked, on Twitter, "We need permits for resident parking. Other big cities do this. Upper West Side residents can't even park in their own neighborhood, and some of us need our cars." What do you say to that listener?

Ydanis Rodriguez: That's my bill that I have at the City Council, and, now, in my new role as a Commissioner, I will be definitely working with our deputy mayors, Eric Adams, our new mayor, and we'll look at this bill. I already have the bill that will create the New York City Parking Permits. I saw it when I went to Albany around the Governor's Office, the residential parking area.

I think that this is something that we should definitely look at. Those are the things that I have different, that I bring as a DOT Commissioner, is that many of those bills, many of those ideas that riders advocate they had, they know that we've been working together with those bills. This is something that I think makes sense, and now, as my new capacity as the Commissioner, definitely I will be now giving another look and perspective to that idea.

Brian Lehrer: This is WNYC FM HD NAM New York, and wnyc.org, WNJT FM 88.1 Trenton, WNJP 88.5 Sussex, WNJY 89.3 net con, and WNJO 90.3 Toms River. We are New York and New Jersey Public Radio. A few more minutes with the incoming New York City Transportation Commissioner, Ydanis Rodriguez, and Wayne in the Bronx, you're on WNYC. Hi, Wayne.

Wayne: Thanks for taking my call. Commissioner, congratulations. I would like to say my biggest issue going forward is vehicles driving and also parked illegally with temporary tags. One of my neighbors, his temporary tag expired last year, August 2020, and he's still driving his car.

He parks at the fire hydrant almost every day, and he's not ticketed, he's not towed. Another thing is vehicles park near auto body shops or mechanic shops where they're with no tags, or if they do have tags, it's from out of state and they're there for endless days. Sometimes they’re broken down vehicles, their tires are flat, and those cars are in good parking spaces, and we have to circle the blocks, sometimes sleep in our cars.

We cannot find parking spaces and these cars are there for days, for weeks. My neighbor, as I said, his temporary tag has been expired for more than a year. What are we going to do about these issues, commissioner? Thank you.

Ydanis Rodriguez: Thank you. As you know, this is one of those issues that we've been discussing at the council, and legislating at the council, where, now, we've passed bills addressing those situations.

Now, the question is enforcement, and definitely, I will be in conversation, in collaboration with the New York City Police Departments to be sure that we enforce the law that already passed at the New York City Council and the Mayor signed it that go after those individuals that use illegal parking permits.

Brian Lehrer: Wayne, thank you very much for raising that issue. I know that's an increasing issue, people trying to get away without paying their tolls on the electronic toll-readers without paying tickets from the red light cameras and things like that with the temp tags, so I think that's a coming issue I know you know that you're going to have to deal with. Let's take a call from one of your City Council constituents, Barbara in Washington Heights.

You're on WNYC with your outgoing City Council member, incoming New York City Transportation Commissioner, Ydanis Rodriguez. Hi, Barbara.

Barbara: Hi, good morning. I'm glad to know you're from Upper Manhattan, so am I. We have a situation up here where these motorized scooters, motorcycles are on the sidewalk. You cannot walk down the street without getting almost hit by one.

My question is that these motorized vehicles can certainly injure somebody beyond repair, yet they're not licensed, and they're not required to have insurance. I was calling to see what your thoughts were on that because you cannot walk down the street up in Upper Manhattan without almost getting hit by some of these new transportation vehicles.

Ydanis Rodriguez: Yes. As I said before, a few months ago, I stand together with our new Mayor, Eric Adams and Congressman Espaillat at Broadway and [unintelligible 00:21:16] calling to get rid of those electrical scooters or mopeds that don't have insurance or that don't have a license.

As you know, right now if you go to a one-cent [unintelligible 00:21:35] discount at Sherman Avenue between [unintelligible 00:21:38], you will see a electrical scooter being sold in those locations.

What we called at that press conference together with Eric Adams, which was his call, that we need to work with Albany to get Albany to give the power to New York City to legislate, to regulate all those electrical mopeds. What we said, one of the idea was that we need Albany to demand that in order for anyone to sell one of those mopeds or electrical scooters, that they should have, first, a permit from the Department of Motor Vehicles, and those establishments, they should require that the person who buys one of those electrical scooter, first, they should have insurance.

That's not enough. What we need to be sure is that we regulate better. I have been a big proponent of electrical scooter, but in a way that should be regulated. When I went to Israel together with Council Member Greenfield eight years ago, and we went to the Holy City, we saw individuals using electrical scooter, and I came back and introduced a language asking for the bill to allow electrical scooter to be used in our City of New York.

I do believe that this is another mode of transportation. The question is, how do we regulate it? And how we make those individuals who use electrical scooter also accountable in the City of New York?

Brian Lehrer: We've got about three minutes left. Let me get you on two more issues. One of them involves a clip of Mayor Adams from the event at which he introduced you as the new Transportation Commissioner last week. This is another controversy in the city right now, whether to make the Open Streets program, with a lot of outdoor dining and things like that, permanent in New York City? And it looks like he's coming down on the side of yes.

Mayor Eric Adams: Right here, we're sending in the Open Streets program, a successful initiative that was put in place during COVID. It was a great opportunity to expand our streets and ensure that we could allow people to move through this city by practicing social distancing and ensuring that we can also keep our city up and thriving. It was a lifeblood for our small businesses, offering space and recreational opportunities, and we want to continue to expand this.

Under my administration, we're going to deepen the success of these programs and similar-type programs, and we're going to expand this into Black and brown communities that have historically been ignored when you use the level of creativity in moving around.

Brian Lehrer: Mayor Adams, last week. Commissioner, should I take that as the new administration, including Eric Adams, including you, are for the permanent outdoor dining structures and expanding them into even more neighborhoods?

Ydanis Rodriguez: That's one of those main areas that Mayor Adam's vision has when it comes to transportation, and that I will execute as the new DOT Commissioner. The one related to reclaiming the street. Our focus, as we're going to be starting on January 1st when it comes to transportation, is around equity, is around accessibility, is about safer streets, but it's also about reclaiming the streets.

I think that the Open Restaurant Initiative is something that came to a stay in the City of New York. As we are going through this new wave of the pandemic, that I put my prayer to anyone that now is going through this situation-- and, of course, my prayer is to those beautiful lives that we have lost in this last year as a result of COVID-19, but also I think that the Open Restaurant Initiative is a good thing.

I feel, for decades, we have created the culture, again, that the street belongs to car owners, to drivers. What we have figured out is that, "No, the street belongs to drivers, but they also belong to pedestrians." They also belong to New Yorkers that want to enjoy having a meal in the sidewalk with their family. That should not be only a luxury of upper-class New Yorkers, that the working-class New Yorkers community also should have the sitting area in the sidewalk. Of course, everything regulated, always looking for the safety of those individual who go and have to have dinner with their family in a open restaurant area.

Brian Lehrer: I get it, you're a "yes" on open streets, and I know that people in some of the surrounding buildings are not happy about that. Hopefully, the city will find its ways to make those as quiet and sanitary as possible for the neighbors as well.

I know that's one of the challenges that the new administration is going to have coming in. Last thing. On Friday when Governor Hochul announced that she would be reducing the mandatory isolation time for people who tested COVID-positive if they're essential workers, like healthcare workers, from what I read, that also includes taxi drivers. People who know your history know that as a member of the City Council, as Chair of the Transportation Committee, you've been a big advocate for taxi cab drivers, Yellow Cab drivers, car service drivers, et cetera. Are you for this?

Do you think this is safe? Do you have an opinion about this? Even yet, it's pretty new, that it only now will have to be five days, instead of 10 days after their COVID-positive test, as long as they test negative?

Ydanis Rodriguez: Brian, we will leave science to guide our decision, and at that level, I think this is going to be a decision up to the Governor and Mayor Eric Adams. I can say that as you know, we were in the frontline during this time of COVID, and the safety of our New Yorkers when it comes to home is a top priority. Also, I feel that in conversations that I had with so many leaders in the whole field, such as Dr. Tallaj from SOMOS, who also was one of those institutions that played important role during this time of COVID, I think that there's different ideas on how we should plan during this new wave of this pandemic.

I think that whatever days will be required for people to be isolated, it's all about leaving the science to guide our decision. I also want, if you don't mind, to add a little bit more on the previous question about the open restaurant-

Brian Lehrer: Sure.

Ydanis Rodriguez: -which is, I want to say that most New Yorkers support that idea, support that initiative. I think it's about, how do we run this program? What is the vision that we have for the permanent Open Restaurant Initiative? I think that we will have the opportunity to have this conversation, not only among DOT, of course, led by the Mayor, but also with SBAs, also with the community board to take feedback.

I think that those small business owners who have the opportunity to use a space in the sidewalk, in the street also should be accountable and asked to also help us to clean, not only the street in front of the business but in the surrounding community. I want to do the best I can in coordination with the Department of Sanitation, led by our Mayor, Eric Adams, to also improve the level of cleaning a street, not only in front of the restaurant but also in the whole City of New York, starting in underserved communities, such as Northern Manhattan, where we had to do much better to clean our streets.

Brian Lehrer: City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez. On New Year's Day, he will officially become New York City Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez. Congratulations again. We look forward to having you on the show many times to talk about all these things we touched on today and more as you implement them. Good luck.

Ydanis Rodriguez: Thank you, Brian.

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