Chicago City Wire

Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) Commissioner Gia Biagi has announced her resignation, effective August 11, 2023. Biagi was appointed in December 2019 and has been credited with leading the department through a period of significant change. During her tenure, she focused on delivering innovative transportation projects and developing a strategic plan that prioritized safe, sustainable, and efficient mobility options while integrating equity into daily operations.

Mayor Brandon Johnson acknowledged Biagi's contributions, stating: "As commissioner of the Chicago Department of Transportation, Gia Biagi has been instrumental in implementing transportation systems and critical public infrastructure that improves neighborhoods, connects residents, and promotes safe and sustainable mobility. I thank Commissioner Biagi for her efforts, and as a Chicago resident, I am grateful for her service. I wish her all best in the future."

Biagi expressed gratitude for the opportunity to lead CDOT: "It’s been an honor to lead an agency committed to creating safer access to opportunities for all Chicagoans, whether they walk, bike, drive or take transit. I am grateful to have worked with CDOT’s exceptional team, and I know they won’t stop in their critical work until they reach every person in every neighborhood."

Under Biagi's leadership, CDOT managed one of the largest transportation networks in the country. Key initiatives included creating Chicago's Strategic Plan for Transportation post-2020 crises; developing the Mobility and Economic Hardship Index; expanding the bike network by over 100 miles; extending Divvy services citywide; completing pedestrian safety projects at over 1,000 intersections; introducing Smart Streets Pilots; advancing streetscape designs; launching outdoor dining programs like Chicago Alfresco; planting more than 15,000 trees under Our Roots Tree Canopy initiative; leading the $3 billion Chicago Works Capital Improvement Plan; completing major bridge projects such as the Navy Pier Flyover; implementing Jackson Park Mobility Improvements; and initiating new CTA station projects.

Biagi's career spans decades in urban planning and design across both private practice and public service. She will be seeking new opportunities to be announced later.