Episode Details

In this episode of Harder Than It Looks, host Brian Wolff sits down with Benito O. Pérez, AICP, CTP, CPM, PTMP, Section Chief for Transit Capital Statewide at the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Benito’s career has moved through urban planning, civil engineering, transportation policy, curbside management, accessibility, and transit capital planning. But the common thread through all of it is connection: connecting planners and engineers, connecting agencies and advocates, connecting infrastructure decisions to real human experience, and connecting today’s transportation choices to the communities we want in the future.

The conversation also gets into the curb: why it is one of the most contested and misunderstood spaces in transportation, how accessibility has to go beyond the parking space, and why public agencies need to think more intentionally about every user who interacts with streets, sidewalks, transit, bike lanes, parking, and the curb.

Benito also shares what he’s working on now at IDOT, helping transit agencies across downstate Illinois access capital funding for buses, maintenance facilities, transfer centers, and long-term infrastructure needs. His advice is simple but important: don’t just plan for what you need today. Think about what your system needs to become.

Key Takeaways

1. Transportation problems are rarely siloed.
   Parking, transit, biking, walking, land use, accessibility, and curbside management all intersect. The best solutions come when agencies and stakeholders stop treating them as separate conversations. 
2. The curb is where everything comes together.
   Benito describes the curb as a friction point where transportation systems meet land use, access, mobility, policy, and real-world user needs. 
3. Accessibility has to be built into the whole journey.
   Accessible parking matters, but the experience does not stop once someone gets out of the vehicle. Streetscapes, crossings, bike lanes, transit access, and signal timing all shape whether a place is truly accessible. 
4. Long-term planning requires more than today’s need.
   Benito encourages agencies to think about their 20-year buildout, especially when funding is available, so they do not solve today’s problem only to create tomorrow’s constraint. 
5. Public agencies and advocates need each other.
   Benito makes the case that advocates and practitioners are often working toward the same goals, but they need better communication, transparency, and trust to move things forward. 

Episode Highlights

[02:00] Benito shares how growing up in a Navy family exposed him to transportation systems in Europe and shaped the way he thought about cities.

[03:00] Why Benito first thought he wanted to be an architect, and how an advisor helped him realize he was more interested in the “architecture of space.”

[06:00] A pivotal meeting with planners and engineers helped Benito realize he wanted to become a translator between disciplines.

[09:00] Brian and Benito discuss why transportation, housing, land use, and parking have historically been siloed.

[11:00] Benito explains how the rise of the car shaped zoning, street design, transportation policy, and the way communities developed.

[20:00] Benito explains his current role at IDOT, overseeing transit capital funding outside of metro Chicago.

[22:00] Why rural transit is often lifeline transportation for seniors, people with disabilities, and people accessing healthcare, food, and other essential services.

[24:00] Benito explains why agencies should plan for their 20-year buildout, not just what they need right now.

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