President Obama signed MAP-21 in White House ceremonies July 6.

Photo by Heather Trimm During the past year, APTA has worked to improve its conferences and meetings with new speakers and a wider variety of programs targeted to public transportation professionals. APTA President & CEO Michael Melaniphy welcomed attendees to the 2012 Annual Meeting in Seattle.	Vice President Joe Biden met employees of American Seating at its plant in Grand Rapids, MI, during a visit in February.

Photo by Todd Parola
Public transportation industry leaders convened with White House officials March 13. Clockwise from left: Melaniphy; APTA Immediate Past Chair Gary C. Thomas; APTA Chair Flora Castillo; APTA Chief Counsel and Vice President-Corporate Affairs James LaRusch; former APTA Secretary-Treasurer Nathaniel P. Ford Sr.; Tom Nolan, San Francisco Muni; Beth Osborne, DOT assistant secretary for transportation policy; Dana Hyde, associate director, White House Office of Management and Budget; Kyle Lehrman, White House Office of Public Engagement; Jon Carson, deputy assistant to the president and director of public engagement; Carlos Monje Jr., senior policy advisor for the Domestic Policy Council; FTA Deputy Administrator Therese McMillan; FTA Administrator Peter M. Rogoff; APTA Executive Committee member Sharon McBride, Greater Peoria Mass Transit District Board of Trustees; and Mike Schneider, InfraConsult.

Photo by Layne Murdoch FRA Administrator Joseph Szabo, seated, tried out a train operations simulator at the Rail Products & Services Showcase.	Photo by Mitch Wood Leading the initial deliberations of the Authorization Task Force, Dec. 7 in Washington, were, from left, Jeff Nelson, chairman, APTA Legislative Committee, and four of the five co-chairs: Nuria Fernandez, Carl Sedoryk, Sharon Greene, and Randall Chrisman.
Photo by Juan Ocampo The APTA Bus & Paratransit Conference offered engaging speakers, educational programs, and the International Bus Roadeo--along with a well-attended Products & Services Showcase--in Long Beach, CA.	Photo by Heather Trimm FTA Administrator Peter M. Rogoff shared information about the federal transportation program during the opening session of the APTA Annual Meeting in Seattle.
Participating at the Jan. 19 White House Roundtable on Real Time Transit Applications, from left, were APTA President & CEO Michael P. Melaniphy; Deputy Transportation Secretary John Porcari; White House Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra; Chris Horsman, chief information officer, Chicago Transit Authority;  Chris Vein of the White House;  and Hugh Mose, general manager of the Centre Area Transportation Authority.	Hurricane Sandy brought flood waters and debris into NYC Transit's South Ferry Station.
Photo by Kevin Allen Participants in the July 10 visit to Washington, held in conjunction with the high-speed rail conference, gathered outside the U.S. Capitol.	The Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County, Reno, NV, invited its customers to ride free on Dump the Pump Day. Promotional efforts included a “Free Transit Day” message on bus header signs; ads in local publications and on the back of buses; and the governor’s statewide proclamation of Dump the Pump Day in Nevada.
An NJ Transit train stands on the tracks, surrounded by debris spread by the heavy rain and high winds of Hurricane Sandy.	APTA President & CEO MIchael Melaniphy spent his first year reaching out to APTA members. While in Los Angeles for a meeting of general managers of municipal public transportation agencies in the Los Angeles area, he toured Metro's facilities with Arthur T. Leahy, left, Los Angeles Metro chief executive officer, and Nick Madanat, director of vehicle maintenance and engineering.