Philip Mark Plotch, PhD is the Principal Researcher at the Eno Center for Transportation. In this role, he conducts timely policy research and expert analysis across a broad spectrum of projects; he is also a critical sounding board on Eno work products.

Dr. Plotch has played a leading role in improving the New York metropolitan area’s infrastructure. As the director of World Trade Center Redevelopment and Special Projects at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, he helped lead the nation’s effort to rebuild Lower Manhattan after the attacks of September 11, 2001. In his previous positions as manager of planning and manager of policy at the headquarters of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, he planned multibillion-dollar projects, developed emergency response procedures, and created strategic business plans. More recently, he was a professor of political science and the director of a master of public administration program at Saint Peter’s University, as well as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar and visiting professor at Sogang University in South Korea.

Dr. Plotch’s research into the planning of large transportation projects has explored the obstacles that lead to lengthy delays and the steps that can be taken to overcome them. He is the author of three highly acclaimed books: Politics Across the Hudson: The Tappan Zee Megaproject (published by Rutgers University Press), Last Subway: The Long Wait for the Next Train in New York (published by Cornell University Press), and Mobilizing the Metropolis: How the Port Authority Built New York (published by University of Michigan Press).

Dr. Plotch received his bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York at Albany, master’s degree in urban planning from Hunter College, and PhD in public and urban policy from the Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy at the New School for Public Engagement.

Eno Transportation Weekly Articles

Martin Van Buren (1837-1841): Building Too Much Too Fast

April 19, 2024 - Martin Van Buren had a strong opinion about the federal government’s role in funding infrastructure projects (known at the time as “internal improvements.”)

John Quincy Adams (1825-1829) Transportation as the Centerpiece of His Domestic Agenda

April 5, 2024 - In his March 1825 inaugural address, President John Quincy Adams argued for an expansive use of federal resources, saying that the exercise of powers "is a duty as sacred and indispensable...

Media Mentions & Commentary

NorthJersey.com|December 28, 2023

Trolley Cars Used to Crisscross New Jersey. This Restored Relic has a Curious History

“People lived and worked in those areas, they shopped in those areas, people knew each other, people could walk from place to place in thriving downtowns, and there was a real sense of connection to...

Governing|November 13, 2023

Navigating the Fiscal Crisis in Public Transit

New York has by far the biggest transit system with the highest ridership in the U.S., and its leaders are uniquely attuned to the value of transit to the city and state, noted Philip Plotch,...