Oakland, CA – June 8, 2016 – Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf announced the establishment of the City of Oakland’s first Department of Transportation. This is a key milestone in the administration goal to more equitably bring greater safety and accessibility to Oakland’s streets for the benefit of all city residents.

The announcement followed a presentation to the City Council yesterday outlining the new department structure, which will include some responsibilities formerly held by Oakland Public Works, such as road design, resurfacing and maintenance. The DOT will have a strong planning focus on sustainable strategies that can bring needed change quickly to city streets. The two departments will be staffed by current employees.

“A better Oakland starts with better streets today, in every part of our city,” said Mayor Schaaf. “We need a world-class transportation department to take a fresh look at our streets, and provide Oakland residents with safer, healthier and more accessible ways to get around, to and from work and school. Equitably enhancing our streets and adding to the array of viable transportation options in Oakland increases the vibrancy of our urban community.”

Mayor Schaaf also announced that the transition to the new department will be led by Jeff Tumlin, a transportation consultant and Principal and Director of Strategy with Nelson/Nygaard, an internationally recognized planning firm that focuses on mobility, accessibility and sustainability.

Tumlin is renowned for helping build consensus-based projects and will manage the creation of the DOT until a director is appointed at a later date. “Jeff gets Oakland and understands how to get things done, and I know that our hard-working staff who will be moving to the new department, as well as our city residents and business people, will benefit from his years of experience in building safer, more vibrant, and more equitable communities,” said Mayor Schaaf.

“This is such an exciting time for transportation in Oakland – our new Department of Transportation is forming just as AC Transit breaks ground on the bus-rapid-transit line connecting downtown Oakland with East Oakland and downtown San Leandro, as bike sharing gets ready to launch, and as the City develops our bond proposal to fund long-deferred infrastructure investments and fight against displacement with affordable housing,” said Mayor Schaaf.

Read the full press release here.