Office of Transportation, Infrastructure and Sustainability (OTIS)
| Office of Transportation, Infrastructure and Sustainability (OTIS) | |
|---|---|
| Type | Coordinating office within the Managing Director's cabinet |
| Predecessor | Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems (oTIS), created under Mayor Jim Kenney |
| Coordinates | Streets Department, Water Department, Office of Complete Streets, sustainability policy |
| Reports to | Managing Director |
| Website | phila.gov/departments/office-of-transportation-and-infrastructure-systems |
The Office of Transportation, Infrastructure and Sustainability (OTIS) is the cabinet-level coordinating office through which the Philadelphia mayor's administration sets policy for the city's roads, transportation, water and related infrastructure. It operates within the office of the Managing Director. Its name and leadership have changed across administrations: city webpages still describe the earlier Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems (oTIS), and this article describes both. The City's web page for the office lists Michael Carroll, P.E., as Deputy Managing Director.
1 Origins
Under Mayor Jim Kenney, the city created the Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems and named Michael A. Carroll, P.E., a former acting Streets Commissioner, as Deputy Managing Director for oTIS.[1] The City's current page for the office describes its programs, including Vision Zero Philadelphia, Complete Streets and Indego bike share, and this article uses the name Office of Transportation, Infrastructure and Sustainability to reflect the overlap of its work with the Office of Sustainability. On July 28, 2026, Mayor Cherelle Parker announced that Carlton Williams would become Managing Director, with whom OTIS's leadership works, effective August 17, 2026.[2]
2 What it coordinates
According to the city's description of oTIS, the office coordinates and sets policy direction for the Streets Department (including both Transportation and Sanitation), the Philadelphia Water Department, and the Office of Complete Streets, which advances safe, multimodal street design.[1] It does not replace those departments' commissioners, who run operations, but it aligns their capital plans and priorities and represents the city with outside partners.
3 Planning documents and projects
The office is associated with the city's strategic transportation plan, Connect, updated in 2021, and with Vision Zero, the goal of eliminating traffic deaths, as well as with federal infrastructure grant strategy. A director of federal infrastructure strategy was added in 2022 to pursue funds from the federal infrastructure law.[3] Projects it coordinates include street redesigns, bike and bus lanes, bridge and road capital work, and facilities such as the interim intercity bus facility at 1001 Filbert Street, for which Mayor Parker signed funding legislation in January 2026.
4 Relationship to authorities and the state
Transportation in Philadelphia is split among many governments. SEPTA is a state-created regional authority; the Parking Authority is a separate authority; state highways belong to PennDOT; the airport is a city asset (see Philadelphia International Airport); and the bridges and ports involve interstate bodies (see Port and Bridge Authorities). OTIS acts as the city's coordinating voice, but capital budgets must be approved by City Council, and state and federal funding shapes what can be built. See Home Rule Limits and State Preemption.
5 Resident access
Residents typically interact with OTIS-coordinated services through Philly311, community meetings on street projects, and Council budget hearings. Street-safety requests, neighborhood traffic-calming petitions and comments on projects are generally handled by the Streets Department's Transportation Division or the Office of Complete Streets. For other help, see How to Get Help From the City.
See also: Mayor's Cabinet and Offices, Fleet Services.
References
- City of Philadelphia, Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems, phila.gov; City press release naming Mike Carroll Deputy Managing Director for Transportation.
- WHYY, "Philadelphia Managing Director Adam Thiel steps down as Parker's administration undergoes staffing shuffle," July 28, 2026.
- City of Philadelphia, "City releases Connect: Philadelphia's Strategic Transportation Plan Update 2021" (October 15, 2021); "City announces new Director of Federal Infrastructure Strategy" (October 13, 2022); "Mayor Cherelle L. Parker signs bill to fund revitalization of interim intercity bus facility at 1001 Filbert Street" (January 14, 2026).