Category: Member Profiles

Lauren Rushing
Lauren Rushing Consulting, LLC
Mobility Planner and and Cycling Advocate

Twitter: @CycleRush

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauren.rushing.16 

Instagram: @laurenrushing

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-rushing-832a47102/ 

Lauren Rushing is a former YPT-NYC board member and an independent mobility planning consultant and cycling advocate. Lauren works with clients to develop strategic mobility plans for local governments, with a focus on creating complete and integrated multimodal transportation systems that serve people and provide mobility choices. Lauren is driven by her belief that bicycles are the missing link to many urban challenges, and puts her professional skills to work advocating for policies and infrastructure that will facilitate a cultural shift to legitimize cycling (and other active modes) as a mode of transportation in urban areas.

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC memory?  
This is a hard one, but I think it would have to be the YPT-NYC/WE Bike Queens Bike Tour last summer. Enjoying summer in the city by bike is always a favorite pastime, but on the Queens tour we also learned about the process involved in building bicycle infrastructure in the city and got to see many of the recent projects first-hand, including the famous 34th Ave Open Street. We had the opportunity to work with staff in the NYC DOT Bicycle Unit to organize the tour and also got to meet some of New York transportation and open space influencers including Jim Burke (34th Ave Open Street) Evie Hantzopolous and Irak Cehonski (31st Ave Open Street) and Kyle Gorman (Senior Program Manager of the Public Space Unit at NYCDOT), as well as local business owners. During the tour we also ran in to Clarence Eckerson Jr. of Streetfilms!
 
2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be?
Hands down, the effective implementation of a strategic plan for bicycle (and micromobility) parking throughout the region. Bicycle parking is one of the biggest obstacles to conveniently using a bicycle as a mode of transportation in New York, both in residential areas and commercial areas. To provide a personal example, there is no public bicycle parking on the street where I live. So, before I moved into my 5-floor walk-up, I made sure it was clear that using the downstairs basement to store my bicycle was a condition of me signing the lease. At the time, and to my annoyance, the building management made me sign a waiver releasing them of liability if it were to be stolen – but fine. However, 10 months later, they gratuitously decided I wasn’t allowed to use the basement space anymore. Since there is no bicycle parking on my street and no “safe” parking anywhere nearby, I am now forced to carry it up and down five flights of stairs every time I want to use it. Needless to say, my usage definitely decreased. Policies that ensure space like this can be used for bicycle parking should be included in a strategic plan. In addition, since bicycle theft is a big issue, the plan should also consider ways of providing secure bicycle parking facilities throughout the region. Luckily, companies like Oonee are already getting creative and providing options, but we need the city to embrace these options. Lastly, travel outside the U.S. and you’ll find awe inspiring, massive bicycle parking garages at major transit stations allowing people to use bikes (and other emerging technologies) as a first-last mile solution. As the “greatest city in the world” we shouldn’t sell ourselves short on these important infrastructure investments.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?  

My journey to a career in urbanism and transportation began as a teenager living in Jacksonville, Florida – one of America’s most sprawled cities characterized by quintessential suburban development. Having grown up in a city built for cars and lacking an enticing and reliable transit system, I was awe struck by the multimodal cities I visited, and later moved to, as an adult. 

I remember when studying abroad, navigating and riding the metro was such a fun thing to me! I loved learning the system and memorizing the transit map. It was a very different lifestyle from how I grew up and somehow that felt more like freedom to me than when I first earned my driver’s license. That’s when I fell in love with cities. 

 
4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by? 
In 2021, I had the pleasure of managing community outreach for the Essex-Hudson Greenway campaign with the New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition. The Essex-Hudson Greenway is a proposed, nearly nine-mile long, multi-use trail corridor following the abandoned Norfolk Southern rail line that runs through eight towns between Montclair and Jersey City. When complete, the Greenway will be New Jersey’s version of the High Line creating more than 135 acres of new green space, improved options for active transportation and recreation, and will act as an economic engine for nearby communities by attracting visitors to local shops and restaurants along the trail.

After decades of advocacy from local residents and electeds, more than three years of direct negotiations with Norfolk Southern, and personally more than one year of full-time work galvanizing community support for the project, in November the State of New Jersey committed to providing funding and securing purchase rights to the existing railway property identified for the Greenway!

Playing a part in bringing such an impactful project to success and being a part of the community of support that built up around the project has been truly amazing and definitely the highlight of my career.

 
5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?

Don’t be afraid to fail. I know it sounds cliché, but I held myself back so much early on in my career with my imposter syndrome. Push yourself to do things that are out of your comfort zone. Say yes to things when you want to say no. You might surprise yourself. You WILL surprise yourself!

That would be a great YPT event. A webinar on how to overcome imposter syndrome. Or perhaps a good topic for the next YPT Podcast club!
 
6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?
I absolutely adored Schitt’s Creek and think Catherine O’Hara’s character, Moira Rose, is hilarious. I would love to hear Catherine do an announcement in character as Moira. 

Lauren Clark
NJ Transit
Principal Projects & Strategic Investment Program Coordinator.

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/laurclar

Lauren Clark is a writer and transit professional who specializes in driving organizational transformation.

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?  
Each event I attend successively becomes my favorite.  I loved going behind the scenes at Grand Central this fall.  Can’t wait to have a new favorite soon.
 
2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be?
All transit should be free for all riders.  Transportation is a right, not a privilege.  I’ll live and die on that hill.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?  
I’ve never owned a car, so I depend on public transportation to get everywhere I go.  I understand how absolutely essential transit is, and I know how sacred and safe a space it can be when it’s done right.  I’m honored to have a hand in making sure as many people as possible have access to these resources.

 
4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by? 
It was a privilege to lead NJ TRANSIT’s ten-year strategic planning effort back in 2019 and 2020.  Since then, I’ve been working closely with the Human Resources team to drive progress toward their identified strategic initiatives, which includes implementation of a Human Capital Management system and major changes to most of our processes.  I’m a sucker for driving transformation efforts—the more impossible change feels, the bigger the knot or the puzzle, the more I want to tackle it.

 
5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?
Find the system you’ll never get tired of riding and dedicate yourself to it.  Worked for me.
 
6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?
The weird robotic voice who announces (and adorably mispronounces) the stops on NJ TRANSIT trains, of course.

Modou Cham
ICF
Senior Associate, Transportation & Smart Mobility

Twitter: @modoucham

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/modoumcham

I’m originally from the Gambia, West Africa, but live in Brooklyn, New York. I currently work at ICF as a Senior Associate in Commuter Services and Mobility Specialist within the Climate, Energy and Transportation division working on Transportation Demand Management (TDM) projects and studies across the U.S. I work on a project that assists local governments, municipalities, and major employers in New York State implement green transportation programs.

Prior to ICF, I worked as the Chief Administrative Officer for an international, not-for-profit organization at the United Nations promoting environmental health and literacy. While I was at the UN NGO, I served as the Executive Secretary on the board of the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development from December 2013 to December 2016, through which we assisted in influencing the Post-2015 Sustainable Development negotiation to mainstream climate change in the Global Goals.

I earned a M.Sc. in Sustainability Management from Columbia University and a B.A. in Political Science & International Relations from West Chester University of Pennsylvania.

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?  
 
My favorite YPT-NYC event was the first one I attended, the annual end of the year event! I very much appreciate that YPT-NYC opens the door for potential new members to meet members that have been with the organization for a while to learn more about the association in a relaxed atmosphere.
 
2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be?
The proliferation of micro mobility programs and vehicles such as bikes, electric bikes, e-scooters, mopeds, e-microcars, etc. in rural/suburban communities. And mostly importantly, micro mobility infrastructure!

Micro mobility infrastructure is deficient in many rural/suburban communities. So, in short, the enhancement of micro mobility infrastructure & the proliferation of micro mobility vehicles.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?  
I studied Sustainability Management at Columbia University Climate School at graduate school and during this time I was exposed to many courses, projects, and discussions related to Transportation and Sustainability.

I took a course called Access, Innovation and the Urban Transportation Transition and this course made me more aware of how transportation can change people’s lives globally. My professors were brilliant and worked on projects from all over the world (New York, London, Kenya, etc.). One of my professors, Dr. Jacqueline Klopp worked on a project called the Digital Matatus – a research project involving Columbia University, MIT, the University of Nairobi, and Groupshot Design Consultancy with the goal of mapping an unofficial network of minibuses and minivans that do not have centrally controlled schedules, fares, or route plan. After the class adjourned, I wanted to work on projects like the Digital Matatus project.
 
4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by? 
 
I’m currently working on a TDM project with the goal to reduce single occupancy vehicles. In this project, we administer an annual campaign called Car Free Day to encourage commuters to leave their cars at home for one day and use an alternative commute mode. It’s a very exciting time for the team I work with because this gives us an opportunity to introduce innovative and alternative travel options such as electric shuttles and autonomous vehicles to urban and rural communities.  
 
5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?
Let your network know you are open to new opportunities and when opportunities come along respond with enthusiasm!
 
6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?
 Eddie Murphy!  80’s SNL/Coming to America Eddie Murphy!!

Daniel Wood
MTA – New York City Transit
Manager, Ridership Modeling Development

I grew up on Cape Cod, Mass, where I eventually got tired of living in a completely car-dominated place, and went off to college in Philly, where I first became interested in transportation professionally. After a couple of transportation-related internships, I went to grad school for transportation at MIT, where I did research for the Hong Kong metro system as a member of MIT’s Transit Lab. After graduating, I landed a job in the data analysis and research group at New York City Transit’s planning department, where I’ve worked for the last six years analyzing bus and subway data and helping to create data-driven applications like new subway performance metrics, real-time applications for subway train dispatchers and customer communication staff, and ridership models. Outside of work, some of my favorite things are runs around Prospect Park, long walks through the city, museums, board games, and (when it’s not a pandemic) exploring cities in other countries, nerding out about the local trains and buses.

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?  
 
Transportation Trivia! I love trivia in general, so a transportation-themed trivia night is right up my alley.
 
2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be?
 
Remove all single-family zoning in the NYC area. Technically this isn’t transportation, but since higher density is correlated with higher transit use, this change could pave the way for increasing transit use and lower car use in the NYC region.
 
3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?  
 
I took a city planning class as an elective in college, and really liked it, especially the parts relating to planning transportation systems. I was a mechanical engineering major, but starting to doubt I’d like working in the “traditional” fields recruiting mechanical engineers—fossil fuel energy, defense, HVAC, widget manufacturers, etc. After the class, it occurred to me that transportation was a field where I could apply both my quantitative skills, and my interest in urbanism and social sciences, and generally “doing good”.
 
4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by? 
 
Right now, I am working on developing an integrated bus and subway ridership model that will be able to trace the paths of NYCT customers across the network, including their transfers between the bus and subway systems. Up until now, my group has had separate bus and subway models that don’t “talk” to each other at all.
 
5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?
 
First, don’t be afraid to jump into the transportation world from another industry if your degree isn’t in one of the fields people typically associate with transportation—civil engineering, city planning, etc. A lot of people I know who have succeeded in this field come from “non-traditional” backgrounds. Second, don’t feel you need to commit to the public sector or private sector for your career; moving between the two is very common. Finally, if you’re aiming for work that involves a lot of data analysis and coding, having some coding knowledge is useful for getting your foot in the door, but once you’re there a bigger determinant of success is being able to research and reason your way through problems, and understand the context of the task in the overall “big picture” of the transportation system. “Muddling your way through” and “sanity checking” are really important skills!
 
6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?
 
Bill Hader as Vincent Price.

Diane Xiao, PE, ENV SP: Project Engineer at VHB

Diane is a Project Engineer at VHB. She specializes in traffic and pedestrian analysis with a background in Transit Signal Priority (TSP) projects and simulation modeling. She is passionate about Complete Streets, sustainable transportation, and pedestrian/bicyclist-oriented design.

Linkedin: dianexiao (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianexiao/)

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?  

I loved the YPT-NYC/WE Bike NYC Queens Bike Tour with NYCDOT. Not only was it educational, but I also got to bike with other transportation enthusiasts which is always a good time. It was great to meet and talk to the community members behind the Open Street efforts on 31st Avenue and 34th Avenue Open Street.

2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be? 

I love biking and the city has improved significantly in its bike infrastructure. However, there lacks a feedback system in the maintenance which often makes it feels more unsafe to bike on the bike lane than in traffic (glass, potholes, etc). I wish I could snap my fingers and make NYC so bike friendly that everyone prefers and WANTS to bike.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?

I have always been passionate about sustainability and climate change. I remember hugging a tree on Earth Day in middle school. In many ways, transportation and climate change goes hand in hand. In the United States, transportation accounts for 29% of the nation’s total emission (15-20% globally)¹. A lot of the analyses and design we do are still car-centric. I hope to be part of the group that works in making the city more multimodal and greener.

 
4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by?  

A project I worked on recently that still excites me to talk about was the Princeton Washington Road Planning Study. We looked at Washington Road, which is the singular north-south connection that will bring the new campus to the existing campus (North Campus).  We created a comprehensive pedestrian, bicycle, and cart mobility plan for the Washington Road corridor.

5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?

I would say get involved and stay active in professional organizations. Talk to people about things you care about and learn about what other people are doing. Talking things through with people helps you realize what is important to you.

6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?

Full heartedly would pick a comedian and let them have free range on the script. Some suggestions from NY: Hannibal Buress, Chris Rock, Awkwafina. 

¹ https://www.nationalgeographic.org/media/transportation-and-climate-change/

Daniel Muniz works for the New York City Department of Transportation where he has served as a Legal Consultant, Analyst, Senior Analyst, Deputy Director, and more recently as the Acting Chief of Staff for the Sidewalk Program. His current role focuses on Program Management which includes budgeting, planning, project delivery, and most importantly – the construction of sidewalks throughout all five boroughs of New York City. Improving New York City’s sidewalk infrastructure and making it more accessible to all pedestrians is the key driver of all his work.

1.What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?  

I would say YPT Happy hour! Being able to connect with fellow transportation enthusiasts in a laid-back social setting allows everybody to network and share experiences. It’s the best way to get to know others and engage with people in the transportation field.

2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be? 

I am probably biased because I live in Rockland County but being able to take a “one-seat” train ride directly into Manhattan without having to do multiple connections/transfers would be a huge improvement. There are options available such as driving to Tarrytown/White Plains and taking Metro-North or riding a Coach bus but commute times aren’t the best. There is talk in Congress to change this, so I am hopeful this will come to fruition.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?

The transportation industry lured me in when I started my first job as a Legal consultant assigned to the NYC Department of Transportation. I was researching trip and fall claims related to the City’s infrastructure and that’s where I first started learning about the Agency and its operations. I obtained a B.S. in International Relations and Politics, so naturally, my next step was to go to Law School. However, by the time I became an Analyst for the Sidewalk Program, my interest quickly shifted to Public Administration and Urban Planning. Understanding how our cities connect and how the movement of people influences community development was what ultimately pulled me into the transportation world.

 
4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by?  

I introduced a model to prioritize sidewalk repairs around New York City Housing developments. We were able to build out a tool in ArcGIS that automated a ranking system based on inputs that accounted for both condition and demographic scores. This allowed us to factor equity more easily into the work we did. It’s been two years since we started piloting this new tool and we are looking to expand its use for other work we do. Shout out to the team of analysts and our Information Technology team for making that project a reality! We are also working on a complete overhaul for all our internal databases and incorporating them all into one centralized system. Being a part of the engineering of a completely new system that will handle all our operations in a more efficient way is truly rewarding.

5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?

Be curious and ask questions! Try to find an area that you feel most connected with and surround yourself with others that are already in the field. Networking events and socials may not be your cup of tea, but once you get out there and start making connections, it all becomes a lot easier.

6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?

Not sure why, but I feel Samuel L. Jackson would be a perfect fit for that role. 

Antonio Sieunarine is an Analyst working at the Department of Subways Rail Control Center. His current work focuses on capital projects that interfaces with the Rail Control Center including NYCT signal modernization efforts. Before arriving at the MTA, Antonio worked for the Newark Downtown District BID as an Urban Planner. Antonio also worked in the aviation industry as an aerial survey pilot and mission specialist conducting LiDAR mapping across the continental United States. Antonio holds an MUP from CUNY Hunter College and a B.S. in Commercial Aviation from the University of North Dakota. When not at work, he enjoys hiking and running. You can also find him staring at the sky anytime an airplane flies overhead.    

1.What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?  

My favorite YPT-NYC event is the Summer Tour Series. I love them for two reasons; being able to host YPT-NYC Tours at the Rail Control Center pre-pandemic and being a participant in tours of other facilities. I am keeping my fingers crossed and looking forward to hosting YPT-NYC tours at the RCC again once it is safe to do so. 

2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be? 

Wearing my transportation planner hat I would like to see true integration across the various agencies providing rail service across the Tri-State Region.

3. How did your role at the MTA change during the pandemic?

The pandemic was a challenging time at the MTA where many of my colleagues made the ultimate sacrifice and their names should never be forgotten. I along with members of my team were part of the effort to stand up a contact tracing effort within Service Delivery for our Train Operators, Conductors, Dispatchers, and other Service Delivery personnel. In addition to performing the duties of contact tracing, these calls to colleagues were also about being a caring and empathetic voice on the other end. Many of my colleagues were quarantined and alone, very sick, and appreciated having someone to talk to during such a difficult moment. The peak of the pandemic saw late nights and weekends where contact tracing calls were made. We knew we had the moral duty to do everything we could to protect and keep our fellow colleagues safe. https://new.mta.info/covid-memorial

 
4. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry? 

This world is an amazing place and the transportation industry facilitates my wandering nature. Whether it is a short trip locally or a different continent, the ability to experience unique things on a local, regional, and global level is one of the amazing things that the transportation industry enables. 

5. What are you working on that you’re most excited by?  

We are currently expanding the usable footprint of the Rail Control Center as we work towards centralization of control and signal modernization efforts across the B-Division (Lettered Lines). We will have one of the largest video wall by area once this project is completed. The video wall will allow us to manage service and assist in the incident handling process. I look forward to giving fellow YPT’ers a future tour of this space.   

6. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path? 

I would advise a fellow YPT’er to remain curious and let that drive your career path. I have focused on the things I am passionate about and it has led to forward progress and career success. 

7. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement? 

If Don LaFontaine was still with us, I would be delighted to hear his voice making an announcement in the NYCT Subway System.

Leah Flax (@ResilientLeah), Government Relations Specialist, Government and Community Relations, MTA

Leah Flax is an urban planner with expertise in public transportation, policy analysis, and partnership building. She currently works on bus and subway projects throughout Manhattan as a Government Relations Specialist at the MTA. Before joining the MTA, Leah worked at 100 Resilient Cities where she developed a suite of tools used by cities globally to apply resilience thinking in urban planning and project development. Leah previously held positions at the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Louis Berger Group (now WSP), and with the City of New York at the Department of Transportation and Taxi & Limousine Commission. Leah lives in Fort Greene, Brooklyn where she serves on the board of the Myrtle Avenue Revitalization Project.

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?  

Trivia – you do not want me on your team, I am terrible at it, but the competition is fun and I always learn new things.

2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be? 

I would make local buses and subways free.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry? 

The liberating feeling of taking the local bus to the YMCA as a middle schooler, and not having to rely on someone to drive me, sparked my passion for public transit. Shout out to Norwalk Transit District!

4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by? 

The 42 St Connection Project is going to completely modernize the 42 St Shuttle and give customers at Times Square and Grand Central Station greater accessibility, reliability, and more space to move around. The project also includes renovated entrances at Grand Central Station which are already complete, and have made a huge improvement to the traveler experience – when I use them it gives me a lot of pride and joy to have contributed to the project.

5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?

Whether you know what your dream job is or not, with every position you take remember to learn and grow as much as you can and cherish the relationships you build along the way. 

6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice an NYCT Subway Announcement? 

BD Wong!

Dubary Brea, New York City Department of Transportation

Dubary Brea is currently the Deputy Director of Federal Transit Administration Grant programs at the NYC Department of Transportation, where over the past four years he has managed a team that oversees the financial and programmatic management of over $500M in federal and state funding for infrastructure projects across NYC. Previously, Dubary spent five years at the Port Authority of NY & NJ and PATH in various roles encompassing operating and capital budgeting and financial reporting, grants management along with two years as a rotational leadership fellow serving in multiple departments across the agency.

Mr. Brea’s varied professional background includes experiences in the public, private, and non-profit sectors, which have shaped his unique policy perspectives. Prior experiences include working at the Congressional Budget Office, KeySpan Energy (now National Grid), Congressman José E. Serrano’s Washington D.C. office, and Groundwork, Inc. He received a Master of Public Administration from the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs (CIPA) at Cornell University, focusing on government, politics and policy studies, and a Bachelor of Arts in international relations and economics from Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why? 

The YPT-NYC Holiday Party is always a fun joyous occasion. I enjoy getting together for the end of celebration and catching up with friends in the transportation sector.

2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be?

I would consolidate all the regional transportation entities such as the MTA, NJ Transit, PANYNJ, and NYCDOT and their respective services, revenue streams under one regional entity. Grant it the independence and authority for all the regional planning, transit service decisions and capital project construction. Imagine using just one fare media on any of these systems, more efficient and smoother service integration amongst all the various modes.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry? 

As a lifelong New Yorker and subway rider, I feel that our local transportation services are generally underappreciated. We love to point out what’s wrong but often overlook the marvel that allows all these services to run every day. I wanted to contribute and learn more about the industry since it is a very important part of our daily lives.

4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by? 

We are currently finalizing the construction and delivery of three new ferryboats for the Staten Island Ferry. The new storm-resilient vessels will be more capable of operating in a wide range of weather conditions and locations – and can also be used in emergency evacuations. My team at NYCDOT manages the federal funding, reporting and compliance for the project.

5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?

If you see an opportunity that piques your interest, actively find out more information about it, network with your colleagues at work, school, or YPT. The information you can glean from your contacts will help you make a better-informed decision.

6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?

Definitely Dwayne Johnson, especially if he voices it using his old “The Rock” wrestling moniker. I feel that many people would be surprised and happy that he would do it, and the announcement when it comes on would get many people’s attention.

Ben Rosen-Filardo (they/them), Transportation Engineer, Sam Schwartz

Ben is an engineer with an interest in using data to improve transportation systems. They graduated from MIT in 2018 with a degree in Civil & Environmental Engineering. Ben has been at Sam Schwartz since starting as an intern in 2015. While not at work, they knit & crochet, rock climb, and volunteer as an operator at Trans Lifeline.

1. What is your favorite YPT-NYC event and why?

The tours! My favorite so far has been BookOps 📚

2. If you could snap your fingers and make one change to regional transportation, what would it be?

I was thinking of saying a true regional rail system, but Robert Joseph picked that one just a couple months ago 😛 At this point, I’d really like to see the subway return to 24-hour service.

3. What sparked your passion to work in the transportation industry?  

I was one of those kids who was obsessed with infrastructure and transportation from an early age. I loved my BRIO train set and could happily pass the time on a long drive with a game of Auto Bingo. In middle school, I was gifted Kate Ascher’s The Works. The whole book is incredible, but I found myself reading the transportation section over and over. It sounds kind of silly, but from then on, I knew I wanted to be a transportation engineer.

4. What are you working on that you’re most excited by?  

Right now, Sam Schwartz is gearing up to help a city transform a downtown thoroughfare to prioritize transit riders, cyclists, and pedestrians. I’m excited to support this effort by giving stakeholders access to real-time traffic data to evaluate the impact of the project.

5. What career advice would you give to other YPT’ers interested in your career path?

Find opportunities to learn on the job! In my current position, I’ve been able to grow my coding and data analytics skills immensely. I now can work with transportation data on a scale that was previously quite intimidating. I’ve accessed these opportunities by being as forthcoming as possible with my supervisors about what excites me, and by finding mentors in the company who are supportive of my continued growth.

6. What famous celebrity do you think should be given the opportunity to voice a NYCT Subway Announcement?

Bernie Sanders 🧤