January 2023 Newsletter

WELCOME TO YPT-NYC 2023; WE’RE HAPPY YOU’RE HERE

Hello, YPTers! Our new board is live and humming with big and small ideas to make your experience this year fantastic. That said, we’re always open to new ideas—the fastest way to reach us is on Instagram or in our LinkedIn group. Be sure to follow to make sure you stay up-to-date on all things YPT-NYC
—Sam

BUT FIRST!
a letter from the chair

Hi, YPTers!

I’m excited to kick start a fresh year with you all as the new chair of YPT-NYC. 2022 itself was an incredible year and I’m so grateful for our members that make YPT-NYC such an amazing organization. Between bringing back in-person happy hours, tours, trivia, games nights, and a full program of networking and speaker events, I thank our outgoing volunteer board for all of their dedication!

Going into the next year, I’m already excited about some of my favorite parts of YPT: seeing new faces at a walking tour, connections being forged at happy hour, and the crowd heckling us at transportation trivia. I hope you are all refreshed and inspired to tackle the upcoming year and I hope that YPT-NYC will be part of it!

I’m also wholly committed to making sure our chapter strives to be the best version of itself – one that is more inclusive, impactful, informative, and ~multi-modal~ each year. We’d be happy to hear your thoughts at any point in the year – you can reach us at yptnyc@gmail.com.

With this, here’s to 2023!

Yours in mobility,

Kristy Tu
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HAPPY HOURS ARE BACK! … and You’re Invited

When? Wednesday, January 18 @ 6:30 pm
Where? Wild East Brewing Co., Gowanus, Brooklyn \\ 623 Sackett St, Brooklyn, NY 11217
How? Click here to register
How Much? Free to attend, beers on you

Join us for our first happy hour of 2023 at Wild East Brewing Co. in Gowanus! Come meet your fellow YPTers and have a beer (or other EANAB*) to help us kick off the best year yet. See you there at 6:30 or later on 1/18.
*Equally Awesome Non-Alcoholic Beverage

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2022: A RETROSPECTIVE
If you, dear member, are like us, you love data and information as a tool to inform. Here are some to whet your appetite, and a peek into the insides of YPT-NYC.

Membership: We started the year with about 165 members and are currently at nearly 220 active members. That’s an over 30% increase in 2022! Let’s see if we can beat that this year!
Events: We hosted or co-hosted 31 events in 2022, or just over 2.5 per month!
Most attended event: YPT-NYC and TransitCenter Present: Finding My Way to Transportation, a Career Panel Discussion. We’ll definitely plan this again!
Attendees: According to Eventbrite, we had 1325 attendees in 2022! See below for a geographic breakdown:

New York really is where it’s happening and we’re glad you’re here.

BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE!
We awarded 3 scholarships totaling $1500 for the first time ever!
We organized events in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and Jersey City this year! (Staten Island, we love you!)
For the first time ever, we offered AICP CM credits for our events!
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JANUARY MEMBER PROFILE: ANYTHING BUT DRY

Name: Phil Betheil

Title: Deputy Director, Bus Priority at NYCDOT

Bio: Philip Betheil is a transit enthusiast and planner who loves working to improve bus service for all New Yorkers as Deputy Director for Bus Priority at NYCDOT.

Contact Phil via LinkedIn

What’s your favorite YPT memory?
It’s too hard to choose one, but it’d have to be from the wonderful tours YPT sponsors. Gazing down on Grand Central from a catwalk high above, everyone covering their ears as a 6 train screeches by at Old City Hall Station, or standing on the bridge of the Staten Island Ferry, I really appreciate the opportunity to get behind the scenes and learn about how our transportation system works.

If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be?
Regional fare rationalization and integration. Making intra-city commuter (regional!) rail fares affordable and allowing for free transfers to subway/bus/ferry/bike-share would do a lot to speed travel for people in the outer boroughs who might otherwise endure long bus and subway commutes due to economic necessity.

What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?
Riding in the front of the 1 and 9 (RIP) trains and looking out the window as tracks, signals, and stations fly by got me excited about transit at a young age and I’ve never looked back.

What career advice would you give to other YPTers interested in your career path?
Once you get your foot in the door in the transportation industry, figure out what you want to do and what skills your current job gives you that overlap with where you want to be. The first job I could get coming out of grad school was doing traffic analysis for environmental review, which I was not particularly interested in. Expressing an interest in other parts of the business and figuring out what skills were transferrable allowed me to change the type of work I was doing and take transferrable skills from one job to another, and meant that I have a broader skill set than I would have had if I got my dream job right out of school.

What is your favorite transportation-related fun fact or joke?
That the Outerbridge Crossing is named after Eugenius Outerbridge and is not just the “outer bridge.” Or that the Holland Tunnel is likewise named after Clifford Holland and has nothing to do with the Dutch.

What upcoming YPT event are you looking forward to the most in 2023?
Summer Tours and Transportation Trivia.
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Other local events from our partners
Riders Alliance: Bus Ridealong for #6MinuteService with Assemblymember Anderson (1/19)

IT’S DECEMBER SO IT’S TIME TO REMEMBER

Happy holidays everyone! This year has been packed (packed I say!) with awesome YPT-NYC events each month, including tours, panels, skillshares, trivia, speed networking, and happy hours!

—Sam

Transportation Trivia with a triple collab: YPT-NYC, WTS-GNY x APA-NY. We coordinate and love to outshine each other. Name me a better trio besides the BeeGees.

WEBike x NYCDOT x YPT-NYC. One of the benefits of membership: group bike rides (then beers)

Summer bike rides are the best, especially with pizza. Thanks to Vanderbilt Open Street for hosting us.

September! YPT-NYC’s very own Michael Ahillen and Jersey City’s Transportation Director, Mike Manzella, lead 30+ people on a tour of the improvements the team is working hard on. Safety! Access!

It’s always too hot in the summer, but why not cool down with your pals in YPT-NYC? Once a month!

Thanks to Board Member (and incoming Deputy Chair, Samuel Chan!) for organizing a guided land/airside tour of JFK with our friends at JetBlue. Many more tours to come next year.

HOLIDAY PARTY DEETS!

DECEMBER 7th! DECEMBER 7th! DECEMBER 7th! DECEMBER 7th! DECEMBER 7th!
This is a reminder that the YPTraviganza aka the annual holiday party is coming up! If you haven’t registered yet, please do so, and please remember that you’ve got to be an active YPT member to join us (as part of your membership) but you’re welcome to also bring a +1 for $15—which includes a drink ticket!
When? Wednesday, December 7, 6:00pm – 9:00pm (or later! We’re young professionals.)
Where? Alewife Brewing @ 41-11 39th Street Queens, NY 11104
How Much? FREE for YPT-NYC members & $15 for member-plus-ones
~Ho Ho Hello 👋 ~ YPT-NYC extended family!
Our holiday party will be held at Alewife Brewery at 41-11 39th St in Sunnyside, Queens from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
We have reserved space at the brewery for the party. Now, all we need is you!
Please register to ensure you get your drink ticket at the door. Delicious appetizers (both veggie + meat options) will be provided for members as well (and desserts, because of course)
Please note that this event is YPT members-only. Please renew or register today. In addition to the food and drink ticket, members can also register a plus one for $15 (which also includes a drink ticket for them)!
Sign up or re-up with the link >>here<<. Your $20-a-year membership will give you access to not only the annual holiday party but also our year-long programming which includes exclusive tours, skillshares, and monthly meetups!
A big shoutout and huge thank you to our sponsor!

YOUR 2023 YPT-NYC BOARD
Please join me (think it) in thanking the 2022 YPT-NYC Board for their commitment to making our group’s monthly activities extremely productive and fun. To keep the party going, we’ve got a new board to announce! Some familiar faces and some new (returning?) ones will surely top this last year! (Sorry, past me.)

Introducing the 2023 Board! Many of us (yeah, I’m back) will be at the holiday party (see above) so make sure you’re there to say hi!