Data's Transportation Tech Ecosystem

Cities today rely on private partnerships to achieve their goals that otherwise might be out of reach — major infrastructure upgrades, for example.

Rodney Stiles, New York City’s Assistant Commissioner for Data & Technology, shares how New York City takes a new twist on public-private partnerships.

Whether repurposing phone booths to provide public Wi-Fi and other services through a program dubbed LinkNYC, or improving the flow of transportation, New York is on the forefront of a new data ecosystem that provides advanced public services and creates more effective public policy by making the most of the city’s data.

Learn how data enables Stiles to streamline regulations to make New York City more tech-friendly while preserving vibrant for-hire industries and income opportunities for drivers.

“Data enables us as the commission to really have a handle on our regional landscape and to really understand what is going on in our market,” Stiles said. “Other cities across the country do not have that fact-based insight and are more or less relying on the word of companies, without solid data to back up those statements. The result is that it is extremely difficult to create effective public policy when you do not understand what, exactly, is going on.”