On Tuesday, 17 June 2025, the government announced more than 100 new measures to improve traffic in Greater Santo Domingo. Described as a sweeping traffic overhaul for Greater Santo Domingo, the comprehensive traffic management strategy was unveiled by Minister of the Presidency Jose Ignacio Paliza, who is also the director of the Transport Cabinet for the Abinader administration. He said the initiative follows a rigorous technical process that included data collection at over 120 intersections, the analysis of more than 220 hours of video footage, origin-destination surveys at over 3,000 points, and extensive micro and macro traffic simulations.
More than 60% to 70% of morning commutes in Santo Domingo are attributed to work and study, according to Alexandra Cedeño Villegas, director of Urban Mobility at the National Institute of Ground Transit and Transport (Intrant). The issue, she explains, is the synchronized nature of these trips, with the bulk occurring between 8am and 9am, leaving people trapped in traffic. This daily convergence creates widespread gridlock, leading to significant delays and heightened stress levels for commuters across the city.
The problem is getting worse. The congestion is said to cost the country more than US$180 million a year.
During the presentation of the Abinader administration’s new strategy to improve transit, Cedeño stated: “We have a consistent annual growth rate of 6% in the number of vehicles. Just last year, we ended with over six million vehicles, and 30% of those are concentrated in the National District.” Cedeño said there is an urgent need to adopt measures that, while uncomfortable for some, aim to ease the traffic congestion crisis.
The Intrant plan unveiled on 17 June 2025 is described as an ambitious new traffic management strategy, promising to ease the Dominican Republic’s persistent vehicular congestion. Operating under the slogan “Traffic Change With You – DR Advances,” the initiative introduces staggered public sector hours, optimized traffic light coordination, and increased surveillance, among other measures.
A cornerstone of the new strategy involves adjusting public institution operating hours. Government agencies with high citizen traffic (between 1,000 and 2,000 daily visits) will implement a two-shift system, running from 7am to 2pm and 2pm to 9pm. The change in work schedules for the government will go into effect in July 2025.
Beyond the two-shift system for high-traffic agencies, a broader staggered schedule for the public sector in Greater Santo Domingo is set to be rolled out. Monitored by the Ministry of Public Administration (MAP), this plan will divide working hours into two blocks: 7am to 3pm and 7:30am to 3:30pm.
Further changes include:
• Coordinated traffic lights: Signals will be synchronized with adjusted timings for weekdays and weekends.
• Regulated parking: Strategic city locations will see stricter parking enforcement.
• Left-turn restrictions: Already implemented at 30 intersections, this measure will be expanded.
Intrant is also collaborating with navigation apps Waze and Google Maps to provide real-time, efficient routing options for drivers.
To bolster enforcement and public safety, Cedeño announced the installation of 2,000 new cameras across Greater Santo Domingo, alongside 600 new police cameras and the deployment of over 700 new traffic agents.
Cedeño highlighted the public’s desire for improved traffic flow, acknowledging that Dominicans have long discussed optimal ways to manage morning commutes, encompassing work, study, health appointments, and leisure activities. The new measures aim to address these daily challenges, offering a structured approach to urban mobility.
Intrant has consulted with the New York City Department of Transport, Brazil’s Imtraff and with French traffic consultants to prepare the new strategy.
Milton Morrison, director of the National Transport and Transit Institute (Intrant), announced he has been consulting with Dominican-American Ydanis Rodriguez, who is the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation (NYDOT). Morrison announced on the same 17 June 2025 the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on behalf of the Dominican government with NYDOT. Rodriguez spoke of his commitment to share the successful experiences implemented in NYC.
Also assisting the Intrant is the Brazilian company, Imtraff that has carried out a technical study of traffic in Greater Santo Domingo, and the French Development Agency.
Overall, the primary goals of this new phase are to alleviate congestion, improve travel times, enhance road safety, and optimize the use of public spaces. This will be achieved through a blend of operational, regulatory, technological, and urban planning measures.
Engineer Alexandra Cedeño, the director of Sustainable Mobility at Intrant, highlighted during the gathering the key components of the strategy. “Among the core elements are road reordering in major corridors, optimization of the traffic light network, parking regulation, time-based management of work and school traffic flows, and the implementation of a new system of consequences for traffic violations, in coordination with the Attorney General’s Office,” Cedeño stated.
The interventions are part of an inter-institutional effort spearheaded by the Transport Cabinet, with collaboration from international organizations, technical experts, and private sector representatives. It directly addresses the nation’s rapidly growing vehicle fleet, which now exceeds six million units.
The delays in implementing mass transit schemes and decades of low interest financing for the purchase of private cars led by the government BanReservas have contributed to a surplus of cars compared to spaces on city streets. President Luis Abinader has announced conversations with France for the financing of the expansion of the Greater Santo Domingo mass transit efforts.
The new strategy did not include announcements of what will be done with the millions of motorcyclists that are in circulation, most with blatant disregard of local traffic laws. Earlier, the government has focused on the need to establish new measures to ensure motorcyclists use adequate helmets for their safety.
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Presidency
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18 June 2025