Sam Schwartz, AKA "Gridlock Sam", has distinguished 35 years as a transportation engineering professional. If one counts his years as a taxi driver, while going to college and graduate school, he has close to 40 years wrestling with gridlock.
Mr. Schwartz started out as a physicist receiving a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Brooklyn College. He went on to graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania and received a Master of Science in Civil Engineering with a focus on transportation systems. He specializes in developing urban traffic programs utilizing his expert knowledge in traffic demand management, transit systems management, traffic calming, transportation planning and engineering.
In 1971, Mr. Schwartz started his engineering career as a junior engineer with the New York City Department of Traffic. From 1971 to 1981, he held several positions including Director of Research and Assistant Commissioner for Planning. In 1980, Mr. Schwartz became the chief architect of the plan to run the city during a full transit strike of subways, buses and rail. The program was so successful during the eleven-day stoppage, that many of Mr. Schwartz's plans were adopted post-strike. It was during the transit strike of 1980 that Mr. Schwartz coined the term ‘gridlock.'
In 1982, he was appointed New York City Traffic Commissioner. His responsibilities included traffic engineering, operations and planning. During his tenure he also headed up traffic enforcement with 3,000 officers. Traffic deaths dropped markedly, traffic speeds improved and an extensive network of bus lanes was introduced.
Mr. Schwartz has developed highly regarded Maintenance and Protection of Traffic (MPT) Plans, which are acknowledged as the standard for traffic control, and is widely respected for his congestion relief strategies. He has been in the vanguard of Intelligent Transportation Systems development and wrote the seminal paper, "Intelligent Traffic," which received the Institute of Transportation Engineers award in 1985.
In 1986, Mr. Schwartz was promoted to Chief Engineer and First Deputy Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation. He was in charge of the 8, 800-person agency with a capital budget of $400 million, an expense budget of $300 million and a revenue budget approaching $400 million.
During this time, Mr. Schwartz became known as the man who saved the Williamsburg Bridge. The bridge, a rail and highway crossing between Brooklyn and Manhattan, was crumbling and had to be shut due to corrosion. It had been so seriously neglected that it had to be closed for four months to repair dangerous conditions. Mr. Schwartz chaired a committee that oversaw an international competition for bridge alternatives and developed a plan that protected local communities while saving the bridge. As Chief Engineer, he convinced the state and federal governments to release monies to rebuild the bridge. Mr. Schwartz revolutionized infrastructure management and left a legacy that resulted in New York City bridges in far better condition. His work led to similar programs around the country and world.
Mr. Schwartz left city government in 1990 and worked for five years as a Senior Vice President at Hayden Wegman Consulting Engineers. He was responsible for transportation engineering, infrastructure, quality control and planning operations in New York City, Buffalo, New Jersey and Connecticut.
At the same time, he began to write the Gridlock Sam column in the New York Daily News. Through this outlet, he provides traffic forecasts and has become the "Dear Abby" of traffic; receiving thousands of emails and letters from readers. His links with the multi-media network are extensive, spanning radio, television, and the internet.
In 1995 Mr. Schwartz founded his own firm which evolved over the years into Sam Schwartz Engineering, PLLC (SSC). He currently serves as President and CEO of SSC, a multi-disciplinary consulting firm specializing in traffic and transportation engineering. Respected by both community groups and public agencies, Mr. Schwartz and SSC have built a reputation for intelligence, credibility, and integrity acting as mediators, advocates, and consultants on local and regional construction projects of all scales.
Clients include some of the most prestigious names in New York including: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Madison Square Garden, New York Mets, Empire State Building, World Financial Center, World Trade Center site and numerous others.
Government clients include New York City and State DOT's, The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's rail and bus divisions, the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, the Port Authority of New York's bridge, tunnel, rail and airport divisions. The list of cities and towns in New York State includes New York City, Lawrence, Poughkeepsie and Roslyn; in New Jersey: Princeton, Trenton, and Toms River; in Canada: Toronto and Windsor; in South America: Colombia, Brazil and the Mexico-Texas border.
SSC has just received an assignment to develop a transportation network linking South Korea with a city in North Korea.
Over the years, SSC has become know in the profession as the "design mediators". When a highway was planned that would have disrupted the town and borough of Princeton, NJ, SSC was called in to develop an alternative. The SSC plan maintained the integrity of Princeton, allowed for added capacity for traffic and reduced costs considerably by maximizing use of existing infrastructure.
When the panel reviewing the architectural plans for the new World Trade Center needed an objective evaluator of traffic, transit and pedestrian plans for the final nine submissions, they turned to SSC.
A billion dollar highway on the west side of Manhattan faced a crippling lawsuit when local citizens discovered that an historic park designed by Calvert Vaux (who designed Central Park with Frederic Law Olmsted) had once sat in the middle of a planned interchange from 1870 to 1930. Sam was brought in by both New York State DOT and the Tribeca community to find a solution. The ultimate plan, adopted by both parties, doubles the size of the Vaux Park while actually improving traffic at the interchange.
In Toronto, Sam worked with attorney David Estrin to review a planned highway spur- the Leslie Street Extension. Sam developed traffic plans that demonstrated that traffic system management measures would adequately handle the traffic and the extension was dropped.
Mr. Schwartz broke a 15-year stalemate on a plan for rebuilding New York's West Side Highway. Environmentalists, construction workers, local and state government officials had been at odds over the planned highway. In a historic meeting in which all parties got together they unanimously voted for the "Schwartz plan."
Mr. Schwartz is on the faculty of Cooper Union, where he established The Infrastructure Institute. He is also a Visiting Scholar at the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at New York University and a member of the New York Transportation Journal Editorial Board. Throughout the past 25 years he has also been an adjunct professor at Long Island University and Brooklyn College. He is a volunteer teacher at New York City High Schools and founded a public school- "The School for the Physical City." He has authored more than 200 professional papers and presentations and has written several books and chapters in books including: Traffic Shortcuts and Tips, A Toolbox for Traffic Safety, Understanding Infrastructure, Traffic Conundrums and Parking Rules Explained.
Mr. Schwartz is an expert in the field of transportation engineering and traffic safety. He has received a score of awards for his work including Bridge Engineer of the Year, Transportation Engineer of the Year, Sage Award from the American Engineering Alliance, Transportation Paper of the Year Award, Volvo Traffic Safety Award for his safety unit at NYC DOT, Outstanding Contributions to Women In Government, Women's Transportation Seminar Employer of the Year and Public Service Award. In January 2005 SSC received the Project of the Year Award as part of the design team for rebuilding a major highway in Manhattan, the FDR Drive, while maintaining all lanes during peak hours. This was accomplished by building a temporary road over the East River.
Mr. Schwartz is a licensed professional engineer (P.E.) in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
