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Joseph DiJohn, 67, professor of transportation at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), died March 19 after battling lung cancer for several months.
 DiJohn was director of Metropolitan Transportation Support Initiative at UIC, which he established in the Urban Transportation Center of the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs to conduct research and planning for transportation agencies. During his 13 years of full-time service to UIC, he was awarded approximately $6 million in grants and contracts for research and technical assistance.
He began teaching at UIC part-time in 1988 while working full-time as the founding executive director of Pace Suburban Bus in Arlington Heights, IL. After retiring from Pace in 1998, he became a full-time faculty member and researcher.
DiJohn was manager of the Regional Transportation Authority’s (RTA) bus division from 1982 until its reorganization in 1984, when he supervised the restructuring of the RTA from an operating agency to a financial oversight and planning agency. He also supervised the creation of Metra commuter rail and Pace, consolidating private and municipal bus systems into a single operation.
During the 1970s, DiJohn was the first chief executive officer of the North Suburban Mass Transit District, now the Pace Northwest Division.
“He had the unique combination of grace and power that served us astoundingly well. Joe was a scholar, a transportation leader, and a gentleman,” said UTC Executive Director Steve Schlickman.
Donations may be made to the University of Illinois Foundation, c/o Joe DiJohn UTC Scholarship Fund, Urban Transportation Center, MC 357, University of Illinois at Chicago, 412 S. Peoria St., Suite 340, Chicago, IL 60607. |
