Transportation, Department of

Agency Web Site: https://www.dot.ny.gov/index

Mission

It is the mission of the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) to ensure its customers – those who live, work and travel in New York State – have a safe, efficient, balanced and environmentally sound transportation system.

The DOT directly maintains and improves the State’s more than 43,000 State highway lane miles and over 7,800 bridges. In addition, the Department partially funds locally-operated transit systems, local government highway and bridge construction, and rail, airport, and canal programs.

Budget Highlights

The FY 2017 Executive Budget recommends nearly $10.8 billion for the Department, an increase of $617.8 million over the FY 2016 budget. This year-to-year change primarily reflects new capital investments in transportation infrastructure, and increased aid to localities.

The Executive Budget includes a workforce of 8,258 FTEs for the Department, an increase of 30 over the amount funded in FY 2016, reflecting the Department’s assumption of snow and ice clearance activities from Columbia and Steuben Counties.

Major budget actions include:

• The Executive Budget provides $1.8 billion in new transportation infrastructure investments over the duration of the Department’s current 5 year capital plan, which runs through FY 2020. This new investment adds to previously planned core funding of $18.3 billion, and includes $1.09 billion of new State funds and $700 million of new Federal funds anticipated under the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act. The FAST Act is the first Federal law in over ten years to provide long-term funding certainty for surface transportation. This additional State and Federal funding will support needed improvements to New York State's highways, bridges, rail, aviation infrastructure, non-MTA transit, and includes a new $200 million Upstate Airport Economic Development and Revitalization Competition program.
• The Executive Budget provides operating support totaling over $5 billion to transit systems. The MTA will receive over $4.5 billion, an increase of almost $157 million from FY 2016, and other transit systems will receive over $497 million, an increase of $22 million from prior year operating aid levels. The Budget includes $309 million in General Fund support for the MTA to offset the revenue impact of the 2011 payroll tax reform. The Executive Budget also continues full funding of the State contribution to Verrazano Bridge toll reductions. Additionally, the Executive Budget replaces FY 2016 one-year upstate transit operating and capital assistance appropriations of $10 million and $15 million with recurring annual appropriations of $15 million and $20 million, respectively.
• Capital Aid to Local Governments for highway and bridge projects is preserved at FY 2016 levels, with $438.1 million provided for the Consolidated Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS) and $37.8 million for the Marchiselli program.
• The Executive Budget ends the practice of transferring $20 million annually from the Mass Transportation Operating Assistance (MTOA) account to pay debt service on bonds previously issued for the MTA capital program.

For more information on this agency's budget recommendations located in the Executive Budget Briefing Book, click on the following link:

Briefing Book – Transportation (PDF)

Note: Most recent estimates as of 01/13/2016

Click for additional detailed appropriation tables