Janette Sadik-Khan, “Guerilla Bureaucrat”

Sadik-Khan and Jay-Z at a Summer Streets press conference. Photo: AP.

In an American Prospect profile of NYC’s DOT commish, Dana Goldstein examines how Janette Sadik-Khan has worked toward transportation reforms without the benefit of legislative support. The piece pretty much nails the political context of the city’s recent setbacks and advances, providing a window onto the commissioner’s frame of mind:

Sadik-Khan sees the initial rejection of congestion pricing as an opportunity. “You know, no big idea happens in New York the first time around,” she says. “It is almost a benefit that congestion pricing didn’t pass, because now we are able to get all these pieces in place prior to the start of pricing.”

There’s also plenty of fodder here to fuel speculation about a potential role for Sadik-Khan in the Obama administration, although as Streetsblog’s Aaron Naparstek says, “She could have more of an impact here.”