Teams from 18 public transportation systems across North America competed in the 21st annual APTA International Rail Rodeo, held June 1 in conjunction with the APTA Rail Conference in Philadelphia. Winners of rodeo events received recognition at the June 2 Rodeo Banquet.

The competition is designed to encourage excellence and professionalism in rail transit operations, recognizing both operators and maintenance teams.

“Public transportation is all about the people, and the International Rail Rodeo is about recognizing the best of our front-line employees,” said APTA Chair Flora Castillo in congratulating the winners.

“Those who operate and maintain our public transportation systems are the backbone of our industry,” said APTA President & CEO Michael Melaniphy. “They set out every day to make America’s public transportation systems the best anywhere.”

The top award in the rodeo, the Grand Champion Award, goes to the system with the highest combined score for operator team and maintainer team.

The operators’ competition measures professional skills including train operation, knowledge of safety regulations, train equipment, and track right-of-way rules and procedures.

The maintainers’ competition judges the ability to troubleshoot maintenance problems.

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, Philadelphia, received the Grand Champion Award and took first place in the operators’ competition. The Charlotte Area Transit System, Charlotte, NC, placed first in the maintainers’ competition.

Among operators, second place went to Danai Lambert and David Becker of Sacramento Regional Transit District and third place to Roberta Randolph and Gregory Raspberry from the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District won second place in the maintainers’ competition with the team of Carl Ambrose, Edward Christian, and Daniel Parris. The team of Brian Shupe, James Salisbury, and Jack Smith from Seattle’s Sound Transit came in third.

Melaniphy recognized the officers of the International Rail Rodeo Committee: Mark Stowers, BART, chair; Mike Richard, BC Rapid Transit Company, vice chair-operators; Douglas Smith, WMATA, vice chair-maintainers; Todd Williams, Penn Machine Company, secretary; and David Kowalski, Chicago Transit Authority, immediate past chair.

Photos by Steve Barrett SEPTA received the International Rail Rodeo Grand Champion Award. Team members are: maintainers, Rob Brooks, fourth from left; Don Chakov, sixth from left, and Nicholas Baldassarre, eighth from left, and operators Adrian Mapp, fifth from right, and Sharon Mapp, third from right. SEPTA General Manager Joseph Casey is third from left.

First-place rail maintainers from the Charlotte Area Transit System: Charles Truong, third from left; Patrick Mills, third from right; and Eugene Capote, second from right. APTA Chair Flora Castillo is at left and APTA President & CEO Michael Melaniphy is at right in all photos.

SEPTA rail operators Adrian Mapp, fifth from left, and Sharon Mapp, fourth from right, took first place in the rail operators' competition. SEPTA General Manager Joseph Casey is fourth from left.