Sam Schwartz is President and CEO of Sam Schwartz Engineering, a multi-disciplinary consulting firm specializing in traffic and transportation engineering. Mr. Schwartz is an expert in the field of transportation engineering and traffic safety. He specializes in developing urban traffic programs utilizing his expert knowledge in traffic demand management, transit systems management, traffic calming, transportation planning and engineering. He coined the term "gridlock" and is widely respected for his congestion relief strategies.
Mr. Schwartz has developed highly regarded Maintenance and Protection of Traffic (MPT) plans, which are acknowledged as the standard for traffic control plans. He has been in the vanguard of intelligent transportation systems development and wrote the seminal paper, "Intelligent Traffic," which received the Institute of Transportation Award in 1985.
Respected by both community groups and public agencies, Mr. Schwartz and SSE have built a reputation for intelligence, credibility, and integrity acting as mediators, advocates, and consultants on local and regional construction projects of all scales. 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. Mr. Schwartz is the author of "Gridlock Sam," a popular New York Daily News column addressing traffic matters in New York City. His links with the multi-media network are extensive, spanning radio, television, and the Internet.
Prior to founding the firm in 1995, Mr. Schwartz was Senior Vice President responsible for transportation engineering, infrastructure, quality control and planning at Hayden|Wegman Consulting Engineers, Inc from 1990 to 1995. He served as Chief Engineer/ First Deputy Commissioner for the New York City Department of Transportation from 1986 to 1990, where he was responsible for an 8,000-person agency, a $350 million expense budget, and a $700 million capital budget. During this time, Mr. Schwartz became known as the man who saved the Williamsburg Bridge. The bridge had been so seriously neglected that it had to be closed for four months to repair dangerous conditions. As Chief Engineer, he convinced the state and federal governments to release monies to rebuild the bridge. He also served as New York City's Traffic Commissioner from 1982 to 1986 and from 1971 to 1982, held several key positions within NYC DOT. He holds a BS in Physics from Brooklyn College and a Masters in Civil Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.
