Webinar Recap: Polly Trottenberg, Commissioner for the Department of Transportation, and Kathryn Garcia, New York City’s first Food Czar and Commissioner of the Department of Sanitation

Polly Trottenberg, Commissioner for the Department of Transportation (DOT), and Kathryn Garcia, New York City’s first Food Czar and Commissioner of the Department of Sanitation (DSNY) discuss the challenges and future of their operations in our Local Impact’s webinar. With city resources scare and the future of the economy unknown, each leader provided their perspective on delivering the city’s core services.

Under Commissioner Trottenberg’s the city:

• opened 66 miles of streets to pedestrians and cyclists;
• created outdoor dining for 8,000+ restaurants; and
• is planning to increase busways by 20 miles.

Under Food Czar Garcia the city:

• provided and delivered 80+ million meals to low-income families; and
• is monitoring the city’s access points to ensure the city’s food supply chain remains strong.

Both agencies experienced severe budget cuts for FY 2021 due to the COVID-19 shutdown. Moving forward:

• DSNY is committed to maintaining clean streets across all neighborhoods, despite the suspension of Sunday collection service and organics program, by working with community organizations to help fill the gaps.
• DOT is focused on speeding up bus service for communities hardest hit by COVID-19, expanding bike lanes outside Manhattan, and maintaining a safe operation of the city’s growing Open Streets and Open Restaurants programs.
• Both commissioners are exploring functions that could operate remote permanently to maintain social distancing and create efficiencies within their agencies.

We thank you to those who joined us. As always, the Partnership is here to connect you with public sector leaders to get you the most accurate and real-time information during this crisis.