Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani with his transition team. Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025.
Photo By Dean Moses
A prominent city transportation advocacy group, Transportation Alternatives, released a multi-page transportation agenda aimed at guiding the policies of the incoming Mayor-elect, Zohran Mamdani.
The extensive report released Thursday, dubbed “The Road to Affordability: A Streets and Transportation Agenda for the Next Mayor of NYC,” appears to give Mamdani an outline of a transportation to-do list that includes what to focus on during his first 100 days in office, as well as long-term goals.
The report includes more than 80 ideas from transit advocacy groups that overwhelmingly favor public transportation over private cars. Whether or not Mamdani will implement any of the plans set forth in the presumptuous plan is not known; amNewYork reached out to his team to find out more and is awaiting a response.
Speed limits, bike lanes and parking availability
The agenda includes several controversial traffic safety initiatives, including some that have sharply divided public opinion among New Yorkers in recent years. These include making daylighting universal, which pits street safety against parking availability; building more bike lane networks; lowering speed limits; and extending Summer Streets to every Sunday.
Transportation Alternatives reps said the report’s recommendations allow the city to “finally reach Vision Zero” safety goals, speed up buses and turn streets into sprawling open public spaces.
“Mayor-elect Mamdani has a generational mandate to transform the streets of New York City,” said Ben Furnas, executive director of Transportation Alternatives. “For too long, New York has been home to the slowest buses in the nation, bike lanes that suddenly end, narrow sidewalks, obstructed intersections, and speeding vehicles. That can all end with an administration that puts people first on our streets, and these recommendations are the way to do it.”
One key pillar of the agenda is for Mamdani and his transportation department to implement Sammy’s Law in more locations. The city transportation department began lowering speed limits in select locations last year following the enactment of Sammy’s Law in 2024, which gives the city the go-ahead to reduce speed limits to 20 mph with proper signage on individual streets.
The Transportation Alternatives report recommends the Mamdani administration commit to lower the speed limits on all eligible roads within the city. They also requested the administration begin changing signage within the first 100 days of the new mayoralship.
Patricia Morant, who lost her son in a traffic collision, is supportive of safety initiatives such as Sammy’s Law.
“Losing my only son, Aundrei, after he was hit and killed was the worst thing that has ever happened to me,” she said. Not a day goes by that I stop missing him. We need full implementation of these proven safety measures so New York City can finally have truly safe streets. No one should be afraid to cross the street, and no one should bury their child,”
Daylighting is another safety measure mentioned in the report. Council Member Julie Won sponsored the bill, which, if enacted, would prohibit cars from parking or standing within 20 feet of an intersection crosswalk.
The NYC Council’s universal daylighting bill would prohibit vehicles from parking or standing within 20 feet of a crosswalk.Photo by Barbara Russo-Lennon
Opponents of the bill, including the DOT, have argued that the practice would not be effective.
“We appreciate the advocates who support this bill, but we spent two years reviewing data from thousands of intersections across New York City and found that universal daylighting would not improve safety and could cause up to 15,000 additional traffic injuries per year,” a DOT spokesperson said.
But Sara Lind, co-executive director of Open Plans, urged the Mayor-elect to support universal daylighting. She said he has “already committed to reimagining” NYC streets.
“We’re especially excited to see expanding outdoor dining, growing School Streets, and advancing daylighting included,” she said. “These are proven ways to make our city safer, healthier, and more connected. It’s inspiring to see leaders across the city champion these people-first solutions.”
Buses on three more Manhattan and Bronx routes are now equipped with cameras to catch drivers improperly using bus lanes, according to the MTA.Ray Raymundi/MTA
During the campaign trail, Mamdani was not outspoken about many of the street safety initiatives outlined in the advocacy report. However, making buses fast and free was one of the highlights of his campaign platforms.
He also appeared at numerous press conferences with transit groups to advocate for improved bus service in the city. On Aug. 7, the then-candidate even set out to race the M34 bus in Midtown to prove how slow it is.
He and other pedestrians in the mix won. They beat the crosstown 34th Street bus by seven minutes during rush hour traffic.
While the mayor-elect has previously expressed support for improving the Big Apple’s bus service, Transportation Alternatives’ other detailed proposals require substantial budget allocations and agency and city council input to overcome any potential resistance to the ideas.