Tri-State Transportation Campaign names new executive director

Renae Reynolds, the new executive director of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign
Renae Reynolds

Renae Reynolds, the current transportation planner for the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance, has been named the next executive director of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign. She will begin her new job on May 3.


The Tri-State Transportation Campaign is a 27-year old organization that advocates for an equitable, safe, multi-modal transportation network that supports the economies of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The organization works to meet climate action goals, stop traffic deaths, and make transportation fair and equitable.

“We believe that Renae will build upon the foundation established by Nick and his predecessors, advancing TSTC to the next level in the years to come,” said John Casellini, chairman of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign board.

“Transportation sits at the intersection of climate, recovery, and equity. We’re so proud to bring in someone who has been a leader in the transportation, environmental and environmental justice communities who has spent the bulk of her career looking at how transportation policies impact vulnerable communities,” Casellini said. “Her reputation with the NYC Environmental Justice Alliance as a knowledgeable transportation planner led to her appointment to the NYS Climate Action Council Transportation Advisory Panel. She is an impassioned communicator and an outspoken advocate for transit equity and climate resiliency – all qualities that led our board to select her.”

Reynolds replaces Nick Sifuentes, who has stepped down from the role of executive director after three years with the organization. Under Sifuentes’ leadership, the organization’s advocacy efforts resulted in victories including the nation’s first congestion pricing program, commitments from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and New Jersey Transit to redesign bus networks and transition to a fully electric bus fleet, expanded bus lane camera enforcement, the reform of NJ Transit’s board of directors, and securing nearly $20 billion in federal COVID-19 stimulus aid for the region’s transportation authorities. Sifuentes’ work has resulted in the expansion of New York City’s bus lane network, increased funding for transit, and improved transparency at transportation authorities throughout New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. His expertise earned him several appointments, including appointments to the New York State Climate Action Council Transportation Advisory Panel, the Penn Station Community Advisory Committee, and the COVID-19 recovery panels for the mayor of New York City and the governor of New Jersey.

“I am thrilled that Renae will succeed me in leading Tri-State,” Sifuentes said. “I’ve known Renae for years as a campaign partner and colleague and think she is the best possible person to take the organization to the next level. Her vision, talent, and deep experience working on environmental justice issues are exactly what Tri-State needs right now. I am so excited to see Tri-State continue to grow and thrive under her direction, and I can’t wait to see what she and the organization do next.”

Reynolds comes to Tri-State Transportation Campaign from the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance, where she managed the organization’s transportation advocacy efforts aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the harmful impacts of transportation pollution in New York’s most vulnerable communities. She led the development of ElectrifyNY, a statewide coalition fighting for an equitable electric transportation future. Under her leadership, the group successfully engaged the MTA to commit to an all-electric fleet by 2040. She was also a partner in advocating for the successful passage of congestion pricing.

Previously she worked with the United State Forest Service in the New York City Urban Field Station, conducting research and community engagement on social and ecological resilience on the Rockaway Peninsula in the wake of Superstorm Sandy. She also managed the science of the living city program. She previously worked on community and youth development with the Rockaway Waterfront Alliance. Reynolds received her master’s degree in the theories of urban practice at the Parsons School of Design in New York City.

“Our transportation system is an invaluable resource that provides us access to a variety of vital opportunities; be they economic, social, cultural or health-related,” Reynolds said. “We are at a moment in time where that system has been tested in unprecedented ways. As we face new challenges and new opportunities to improve our transportation system we must ensure equity, and justice are at the forefront. I am extremely proud and excited to take on this role of leadership at Tri-State Transportation Campaign. I look forward to the continuous work to advocate for a transportation future that responds to the call for environmental justice, economic justice, climate justice, access, and inclusion.

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Krystal Knapp is the founding editor of Planet Princeton. Follow her on Twitter @krystalknapp. She can be reached via email at editor AT planetprinceton.com. Send all letters to the editor and press releases to that email address.