Rita Robinson
Streetsblog LA
Word on the Street: Rita Robinson Leaving LADOT
Rumors are floating around City Hall that Rita Robinson will be stepping down as General Manager of the LADOT to take a high-level position with L.A. County. While nobody who discussed the rumor with me wanted their name attached to this story, I can say that the sources are high enough up in the city bureaucracy to be credible.
September 22, 2010
Good Transportation Planning: It’s Not Magic
Way back on April 14, LADOT General Manager Rita Robinson spoke in front of the City Council Transportation Committee on how the department is going to deal with the city's budget crunch. Robinson delivered her usual passionate defense of the "LADOT Family" in the midst of the cuts and also brought a basket fool of amazing analogies. She compared planning in the budget crisis to working with a bad comb over, ("you think you're covered but you're totally exposed") and compared her experiences with furloughs and layoffs to a parent having to decide which of her children to feed. Oddly, her comments about the City Council having "Reality Deficit Disorder" seemed to be left at home.
April 26, 2010
In New York, Robinson Packs the House, Leaves Em Speechless
LADOT General Manager Rita Robinson spoke to a standing room-only crowd at NYU's Rudin Center this morning, kicking off the New York City Street Summit. Robinson's speech, delivered just two weeks after NYCDOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan brought lessons from the Big Apple to her backyard, was both a spirited defense of LADOT's planning policies and a response to Sadik-Khan's vision of change.
April 1, 2010
LADOT: We’re Too Poor to Staff Bike Advisory Committee Meetings
As budget cuts hit agencies across the city, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation continues to make cuts by retreating from its already lacking commitment to public outreach. In a letter addressed to Bicycle Advisory Committee Chair Glenn Bailey LADOT General Manager Rita Robinson informs the Committee that the LADOT will no longer be able to provide staff to attend any meeting that takes place after business hours and won't provide any support staff at all. The LADOT has already backed away from its commitment to have a working Memorandum of Understanding with Neighborhood Councils, and now they're bailing on providing support for its own advisory bodies. You can read Robinson's letter here.
January 5, 2010
Rita Robinson Unplugged: Speaking Truth to Power or Excuse Making?
Earlier today in City Watch, Editor Ken Draper sings the praises of LADOT General Manager Rita Robinson for speaking to last weekend's meeting of Neighborhood Council representatives and being bluntly honest about the state of the city's finances while attacking the City Council. Draper's column is full of tough talk from Robinson, all of which can be seen on the video above. She doesn't mince words, claiming the City Council is in a state of "denial" and that they suffer from "Reality Deficit Disorder."
December 18, 2009
Welcome to the Blogroll: Rita Robinson’s Twitter Page
Normally, I wouldn't add a Flickr page to our blogroll on the right; but given that the LADOT press office is operating on a shoestring budget a flickr page from the LADOT General Manager could be a useful tool to get information out to the public.
September 1, 2009