2025 Power Players in Transportation

Rick Cotton became executive director of The Port Authority of NY and NJ in August 2017. Prior to that, Mr. Cotton served as New York State’s special counsellor to the Governor for interagency initiatives. Previously, Mr. Cotton spent 25 years at NBC Universal. Mr. Cotton received an A.B. from Harvard College and a J.D. from Yale Law School, and served as a law clerk to Justice William J. Brennan, Jr. on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Matthew Daus is the Transportation Practice founder, chair, and partner at Windels Marx, a full-service law firm. His NYC public service career included: commissioner, chair and CEO of NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC); Civil Service commissioner; TLC and Community Development Agency general counsel; Trade Waste Commission special counsel; and human rights prosecutor. Also, Daus serves as: president of the International Association of Transportation Regulators, transportation technology chair of the City University of NY’s Transportation Research Center, and chair of the NYC Bar Association’s Transportation Law Committee.

How can policymakers support the transportation industry?
Policymakers should embrace a multi-modal ecosystem, meaning that all transport modes (public and private) should connect to serve passengers without favoring one mode over another. Public transit should work with private for-hire ground transport modes and micro-mobility (bike sharing), and not compete against them or pretend they do not exist.  Having an open mind, free of modal bias, and engaging with private stakeholders “before” making policy decisions, is critical.   

Is there a transportation improvement or project that you hope to see completed in 2025?
Congestion pricing needs to be retooled to exempt all private buses/vans, taxis and for hire vehicles, alternative fueled vehicles (including EVs) and shared rides (ride pooling or Uberpool).  Also, the NY legislature should remove the billion-dollar annual price tag (which has interfered with policymaking) and create a lockbox from all taxi/Uber trips to subsidize first and last-mile connecting trips to public transit and to use all wheelchair-accessible taxicabs with an MTA smartphone app.   

What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?
When making policy, use the “golden rule” – and treat others the way you want to be treated.  “What goes around, comes around” and you will see the same people on the way up the career ladder as you will on your way down when you encounter setbacks, so be nice and respectful to everyone – even if you disagree.

David Do has been commissioner and chair of the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission since May 19, 2022. Do has helped secure millions in relief to taxi medallion owners, is the first in his role to get a TLC license and was instrumental in the implementation of the Green Rides Initiative, a first-in-nation set of rules that requires 100% of TLC’s Uber & Lyft trips to be either zero-emission or wheelchair accessible by 2030.

How can policymakers support the transportation industry?
As detailed in TLC’s September report, Electrification in Motion, Green Rides has boosted public and private partnerships in the city’s charging infrastructure development. Providers have announced plans to bring at least 180 fast-charging plugs online over the next two years. Additionally, Green Rides has already met its outlined trip transition milestone before 2025 began. We look forward to this type of progress in the months and years ahead.

Is there a transportation improvement or project that you hope to see completed in 2025?
TLC will focus on policies designed to continue to increase stability for drivers and accessibility and safety for passengers. That includes proposing minimum pay rule amendments designed to deter rideshare companies from future “lockouts,” passage of rules permitting in-vehicle tablets in for-hire vehicles, with at least 25% of gross revenue going into drivers’ pockets, and ensuring that 50% of all active taxicabs are wheelchair accessible.

What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?
I learned from my parents – who are Vietnamese immigrants – that communication and hard work are invaluable. I spend much of my time speaking to drivers, learning about their day-to-day concerns. That’s why I’m the first sitting TLC commissioner to get my license and do trips. Understanding the drivers’ lived experience puts me in the best position to be an understanding, well-rounded regulator. I look forward to always hearing from our dedicated licensees.

Dominguez leads NYSDOT’s team of over 8,500 professionals, working to modernize New York’s infrastructure while providing a safe, reliable, equitable and efficient transportation system encompassing highways, bridges, rail, aviation, and public transportation. She also coordinates New York’s statewide emergency response and serves on the Gateway Development Commission. Her executive leadership at the federal level includes serving as administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration at USDOT, a position she was unanimously confirmed to serve in by the US Senate and as the principal deputy assistant secretary at Army Civil Works, overseeing the Corps of Engineers.

How can policymakers support the transportation industry?  
Under Gov. Hochul’s leadership in the first two years of DOT’s historic $33 billion Capital Plan, NYSDOT has achieved significant milestones modernizing our transportation network to meet 21st-century needs, while also addressing planning mistakes of the past by reconnecting communities. Tackling New York’s aging infrastructure requires continuous and sustained investment, planning and partnership across the board. NYSDOT’s most important asset is its people, and we are always seeking to better protect our workers in the face of an alarming rise in speed, harassment, and assaults in work zones.

Is there a transportation improvement or project that you hope to see completed in 2025?  
The Hunts Point Access Improvement Project is on track for completion in the fall of 2025. This project has brought positive change to the South Bronx by diverting heavy truck traffic away from local neighborhoods and providing direct access to the Hunts Point Terminal Market, the largest wholesale produce market in the world, the project is enhancing air quality and creating safer pathways and access for pedestrians to newly built and expanded parks along the Bronx River. 

What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?
“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”  This quote from James Baldwin stands the test of time – while we cannot solve every problem, the first step we can take is to acknowledge the issue and confront it, then work to effect positive change.

Megan joined the Transportation Alternatives team in 2023. Prior to TA, she co-founded a NY nonprofit focused on helping immigrant youth access legal counsel. She’s a former NYC public school teacher and an attorney licensed to practice in NY State, with experience in human resources, operations, fundraising, and event planning at nonprofit organizations. Megan holds a J.D. from New York Law School and a B.A. in political science from George Washington University.

How can policymakers support the transportation industry?
They can ride, use, and support mass transit and sustainable transit! We need to see more policymakers on the train, on the bus, in the bike lane, and walking around the City. It’s impossible to make good transportation policy without a solid on-the-ground understanding of what it’s like to use and rely on mass transit and micromobility, so we need more legislators to move like New Yorkers move.

Is there a transportation improvement or project that you hope to see completed in 2025?
There are several! We’re hoping to see a safe Canal Street, a bus lane on Flatbush Avenue, a fast ferry between Brooklyn and Staten Island, a bike lane on Adam Clayton Powell, separated bike and pedestrian paths on the Queensboro Bridge, and a finished Grand Concourse in the Bronx. Our leaders can do so much more to ensure that every street and every intersection in the five boroughs is safe and accessible. 

What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?
Work with people you like. Find a workplace that has similar ethics and values to your own and collaborate to bring about positive change.

Mike Elmendorf was named president and CEO of the Associated General Contractors of New York State (AGC NYS), New York’s leading construction industry association, in February 2011. Elmendorf also serves as president of Rebuild NY Now, a broad-based coalition of business, labor, local government and environmental organizations advocating for increased investment in transportation and environmental infrastructure. 

Mike Finley is CEO of Boingo Wireless, a connectivity leader that designs, builds and manages wireless networks throughout the tri-state and worldwide, including at Grand Central Madison, the World Trade Center Oculus, Jamaica Station, JFK and LaGuardia. Finley serves on the board of the CTIA, Regional Plan Association and Creighton University Board of Trustees. He received NYSCI’s 2024 Vision and Venture Award for technology leadership and local impact.

How can policymakers support the transportation industry?
Policymakers have made tremendous progress advancing critical infrastructure, like 5G, in New York to strengthen transportation systems and position the city and state for economic growth. We’ve seen encouraging public-private partnerships accelerating innovation and investing in workforce development equips talent with skills for emerging technologies.

Is there a transportation improvement or project that you hope to see completed in 2025?
Similar to Boingo’s work deploying connectivity at Grand Central Madison, I hope to see more projects that advance connected infrastructure. Reliable 5G and Wi-Fi networks can transform how people move and transportation hubs operate, but network security must be a priority for new and existing projects. Secure networks are vital for keeping venues safe, efficient and future-ready. These advancements depend on collaboration among policymakers, industry leaders and communities, building on the strong foundation already established.

What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?
One of my mentors once said, “Great leaders listen more than they speak.” As a college baseball player, I learned that listening to coaches and teammates was essential to success. That advice shaped my career, reminding me leadership is about understanding others and making informed decisions. Motivating a team means working toward shared goals, which comes from listening, valuing input, and aligning efforts to succeed together.

Michael Fleischer has been engaged in transportation policy in NYS for nearly 30 years, including leadership positions at the highest levels of NYS’s major transportation agencies during the administrations of four governors. Fleischer served as executive director of the Thruway from 2003-2011 where he developed and executed a statewide campaign to build support for the financing of a multiyear capital program. Fleischer worked at DOT from 1995-2003 including serving as first deputy commissioner where he was directly responsible for the development and implementation of the annual highway and bridge program.

Jeff Garte serves as the head of U.S. transit and government solutions for Boldyn Networks and is responsible for the company’s transportation and connected community pursuits and relationships across the U.S. These include the company’s major transit projects in New York City, San Francisco, and Seattle. Prior to this role, Jeff served as the president, northeast of Boldyn Networks’ U.S. business and CFO of Transit Wireless, now Boldyn Networks. 

How can policymakers support the transportation industry?
Policymakers can support the transportation industry by helping to pass infrastructure and transit bills that keep cities moving forward and investing in future-proof infrastructure. One example is the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed in 2021 that can positively impact transportation nationally and the way people travel. Investing in long-term infrastructure helps set forward enhanced, safer, and long-lasting transportation methods.

Is there a transportation improvement or project that you hope to see completed in 2025?
In the last few years, we’ve seen a lot of successful projects move forward, such as Grand Central Madison and the Gateway Program. It’s critical to keep this momentum going in 2025 with more transportation developments that improve the way people travel and communicate. For example, we’re looking forward to continuing to grow our wireless network in the New York City Subway which will provide riders with seamless connectivity.

What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?
The best advice I have received from a mentor is not to let the enormity of a project or the uncertainty of doing something new overwhelm you. Create a plan, put one foot in front of the other, listen to your team, and adjust with confidence that you can achieve your goal.

As associate director of Families for Safe Streets, Dahlia Goldenberg organizes families who have been injured or lost a loved one to traffic violence. She leads a team of organizers and social workers who coordinate spaces where families find comfort while turning their grief into action to prevent future tragedies. Previously, she worked internationally with grassroots women’s organizations and then held local community organizing jobs related to women’s leadership and racial and economic justice.

How can policymakers support the transportation industry?
Policymakers need to propose and fight for truly bold interventions. This looks like lowering speed limits and redesigning our streets. This looks like new policies that make the vehicles themselves safer. This looks like more automated enforcement to ensure predictable and fair ticketing. There’s so much we can do to reimagine our streets and our city to prevent crashes – we just need to get started.

Is there a transportation improvement or project that you hope to see completed in 2025?
We need full implementation of Sammy’s Law, which allows us to reduce speed limits to 20mph on most city roads. The city has begun lowering the speed limit on a list of streets and zones, but the pace needs to level up. Legislators in Albany must reauthorize the highly effective speed camera program this year. They should also pass Speed Limiters for Repeat Offenders, preventing repeat offenders from speeding, with technology installed in their cars.

What is the best advice you have received from a mentor?
Organize the people “closest to the problem.” Their lived experience means they can boldly envision a changed world with policies that they know will work in their communities. Their stories and voices can also be highly influential. Together, we can build the power to improve our conditions by drawing on lived experiences, sound research and partnerships with other community and government stakeholders.