Hiram Walker, 75, of Oceanside, CA, a 33-year employee of FTA and its predecessor, the Urban Mass Transit Administration (UMTA), died Jan. 6.

Walker began his career with UMTA in 1971 and retired from FTA in 2005. He served in many roles including regional administrator in New York City, deputy associate administrator and associate administrator for program management, and regional administrator in Atlanta. He led FTA during the presidential transition in 2001 and continued serving as acting deputy administrator in 2001-2002.

He was closely involved in nearly all areas of UMTA and FTA work and helped establish many programs, championing one of the first electronic federal grant-making systems, and guiding agency project management and regional operations. He was also a mentor to many former and current FTA employees.

“All of us who worked with Hiram, both as his associates with the Federal Transit Administration and as partners with FTA in improving transit systems across the country, recall him with great respect and affection,” said Jerome C. Premo, executive vice president, AECOM. “Hiram was a professional in every sense of the word: fair, committed, hard-working,  and good-humored. Hiram was a good fella!”

Prior to joining FTA,Walker completed the coursework for his Ph.D. in planning and was a Fulbright Scholar in South Korea. He was born and raised in Parkers Lake, KY.