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.

Organization and Staffing

The Department is headed by a Commissioner appointed by the Governor, subject to Senate confirmation. The Department’s main office is in Albany, with 11 regional offices in Schenectady, Utica, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, Hornell, Watertown, Poughkeepsie, Binghamton, Hauppauge, and New York City. The Department also maintains highway maintenance and equipment repair facilities across the State.

Employees of the Department perform such activities as highway maintenance, snow and ice removal, highway and bridge design, and construction inspection. In addition, the Department’s staff inspects school and charter buses, regulates commercial transportation, oversees public transportation systems and State-owned airports, and provides administrative support for the Department.

Budget Highlights

The FY 2018 Executive Budget recommends nearly $11.6 billion for the Department, an increase of $749.1 million over the FY 2017 budget. This year-to-year change primarily reflects new capital investments in transportation infrastructure.

The Executive Budget includes a workforce of 8,453 FTEs for the Department, an increase of 86 over the amount funded in FY 2017, reflecting planned increases to support the Department’s capital plan.

Major budget actions include:

• The Executive Budget provides funding for the third year of DOT’s capital plan for the period that began in FY 2016, and reflects significant additional commitments made in the FY 2017 budget. These investments will support needed improvements to New York State’s highways, bridges, rail, aviation, and non-MTA transit infrastructure.
• The Executive Budget provides $564 million of new State bonded resources to improve access to and from the John F. Kennedy International Airport, and also continues funding for the $200 million Upstate Airport Economic Development and Revitalization Competition program begun in FY 2017.
• The Executive Budget provides operating support totaling almost $5 billion to transit systems. The MTA will receive almost $4.5 billion, an increase of $30 million from FY 2017, and other transit systems will once again receive a record-high $502 million of annual operating assistance. The Budget also includes $244 million in General Fund support for the MTA to continue, as in prior years, to partially offset the revenue impact of the 2011 payroll tax reform, and continues full funding for the existing commercial and Staten Island resident rebate programs by again providing $10.3 million toward the MTA’s operating budget.
• Capital Aid to Local Governments for highway and bridge projects is preserved at FY 2017 levels, with $438.1 million provided for the Consolidated Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS) and $37.8 million for the Marchiselli program. The Budget also continues the State’s commitment to providing $100 million for local bridge projects through the BRIDGE NY program, and $100 million for local highway improvements through the PAVE NY 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)

Program Highlights

• Highway Construction and Maintenance: Improving the State’s vital transportation infrastructure remains the agency’s highest priority. During 2015-16, the Department replaced or rehabilitated a total of 420 State bridges, and completed 5,238 corrective and preventive bridge treatments to slow deterioration. In addition, 2,311 lane miles of State highway were resurfaced or reconstructed. Construction of virtually all highway and bridge projects is performed by private firms, while most corrective and preventive maintenance activities are performed by DOT staff.
• Engineering: State staff and private-sector consultants perform the planning, property acquisition, design engineering, environmental reviews, surveying, materials and soils testing, and construction inspection necessary to deliver the Department’s capital program.
• Local Highway Aid: The State makes a significant investment in helping localities maintain safe roads and bridges through the CHIPS, Marchiselli, BRIDGE NY and PAVE NY programs. The CHIPS program provides aid to cities, counties, towns and villages on a formula basis, while the Marchiselli program helps local governments meet required matching requirements on Federally funded projects. The BRIDGE NY and PAVE NY programs were created in the FY 2017 budget, and provide additional State aid for local bridge and highway projects.
• Transportation Safety and Environmental Compliance: Department staff perform safety inspections of school buses throughout New York State. In addition, the Department administers safety and emissions inspections of commercial trucking on State highways, as well as a comprehensive program to ensure public safety along the State’s commercial rail corridors.

Note: Most recent estimates as of 1/17/2017