APTA Calls for Rail Funding at House Hearing

APTA President & CEO Michael Melaniphy called for a federal authorization of $50 billion over six years for high-speed and intercity passenger rail when he testified June 27 before the Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. [More]

Appropriations Bills Pass House, Senate Committees

On June 27, appropriations committees in both the House and Senate approved Fiscal Year 2014 appropriations bills that include transportation funding. [More]

Calgary Transit Mobilizes Buses to Evacuate Residents as City Recovers from Flood

Calgary Transit in Calgary, AB, is recovering after devastating floods last week left parts of the public transit system underwater. [More]

 

NEWS HEADLINES

Industry Sues to Halt Frivolous Patent Claims

APTA filed a lawsuit June 25 in federal court seeking to halt frivolous patent infringement claims against public transit systems throughout the country by two foreign companies. [More]

Obama Addresses Climate Change

President Obama announced on June 25 a sweeping package of policy measures to address global climate change, including a handful of actions targeted to transportation and infrastructure. [More]

New Flyer Acquires NABI

New Flyer Industries Inc. has announced its acquisition of North American Bus Industries Inc. from an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management L.P. for cash consideration of approximately $80 million, virtually all for the satisfaction of affiliate debt. [More]

Twin Cities Welcome Red Line BRT Service

 Metro Transit in Minneapolis/St. Paul introduced the community to its newest service, the Metro Red Line, with public events June 22 at major stations and free rides through June 30 on the line and Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA) connecting bus routes. [More]

DART, The T to Operate Connector Route

 The boards of the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The T) and Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) have joined the city of Arlington, TX, in approving an Interlocal Public Transit Service Agreement that will provide bus service between downtown Arlington and the Trinity Railway Express (TRE) CentrePort commuter rail station in Fort Worth. The T and DART jointly own and operate TRE. [More]

Sound Transit Starts Building Permanent Tukwila Station

Sound Transit broke ground June 24 on a permanent Sounder commuter rail station at Tukwila, WA. The new facility will replace a temporary structure at the site that Sounder passengers have used since 2000; the temporary station will remain open during construction. [More]

Sun Metro Breaks Ground for First Brio BRT Line

Sun Metro in El Paso, TX, kicked off construction for the Sun Metro Brio, the region’s future Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, June 19 at the Glory Road Transfer Center. The service will operate with high-capacity vehicles operating in mixed traffic with controlled traffic signals, providing improved speed and reliability. [More]

Prendergast Approved as N.Y. MTA Chairman

The New York State Senate has confirmed Thomas F. Prendergast as chairman and chief executive officer of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). He has served in this position on an interim basis since Jan. 1. [More]

Long Beach Transit Names McDonald as President/CEO

Long Beach Transit (LBT), Long Beach, CA, has named 25-year public transportation professional Kenneth McDonald as its new president/chief executive officer, effective Aug. 1. [More]

Varner Is New Executive Director in Little Rock

Jarod Varner is joining the Central Arkansas Transit Authority (CATA), North Little Rock, as its executive director and general manager, effective July 15. He will succeed Betty Wineland, a 25-year CATA employee who is retiring. [More]

APTA NEWS

APTA Hosts Third Youth Summit in Washington

Forty-eight students representing 19 states came to Washington June 23-26 to participate in APTA’s third Youth Summit. APTA’s business members and the Business Member Board of Governors provided financial support for the summit. [More]

Free Congress Report Calls for Public Transit Investment

The Free Congress Foundation’s Center for Urban Policy and Transportation has released a report examining the economic benefits of investing in efficient metropolitan public transportation systems. [More]

McMillan to Address Workshop

FTA Deputy Administrator Therese McMillan and an expert panel commemorating the fourth anniversary of the Federal Partnership for Sustainable Communities will headline the 9th Annual Sustainability and Public Transportation Workshop, July 28-30 in San Francisco. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transportation District are host
systems for the workshop. [More]

Reno’s Gibson Addresses Senate Committee

Lee Gibson, executive director, Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County, Reno, NV, and a member of the APTA Board of Directors, participated in a June 19 session of the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee on rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and plans for MAP-21 reauthorization. [More]

AROUND THE INDUSTRY

Legendary Transportation Educator, Scholar George M. Smerk Honored as Industry Pioneer

Mentor. Dedicated. Pillar. Game Changer. Treasure.

So say some of the former students of legendary Indiana University Professor George M. Smerk, who will gather July 6 on the IU campus to celebrate the 80th birthday of the man many public transit industry leaders say launched their careers and transformed the public transportation industry. [More]

Across the U.S., Agencies Work to ‘Dump the Pump’

 More than 100 U.S. public transportation systems and businesses participated in the 8th National Dump the Pump Day, sponsored by APTA in partnership with the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council. This national public awareness day encourages people to save money by parking their cars and using public transportation instead. [More]

PRTC Receives Continuation Grant for Medical Transportation Program

The Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission (PRTC), Woodbridge, VA, has received a second grant from the Potomac Health Foundation that will allow the agency to continue providing eligible residents of eastern Prince William County, VA, with non-emergency medical transportation. [More]

Capital Metro Honored for Commitment to Wellness Efforts

The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Capital Metro) in Austin, TX, recently received the CEO Cancer Gold Standard Award from the CEO Roundtable on Cancer, recognizing the agency’s commitment to the health of its employees, contractors, and their families. [More]

A Station with Art at the Center

“Sky Reflector-Net,” a reflective metal sculpture, will be at the heart of MTA New York City Transit’s Fulton Center in Lower Manhattan when the facility opens next year. [More]

MBTA Opens Underground Emergency Training Center

Boston’s Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) opened its new Emergency Training Center in ceremonies June 12. John Pistole, administrator, Transportation Security Administration, joined ­Massachusetts DOT Secretary and Chief Executive Officer Richard A. Davey, MBTA Transit Police Chief Paul MacMillan, and MBTA General Manager Beverly A. Scott for the event.
MBTA constructed the state-of-the-art facility in former streetcar tunnels, funded with a $10 million grant from the Department of Homeland Security. It provides advanced training, exercise, and simulation capabilities in a ­realistic tunnel environment. [More]

Graduation Day for N.Y. Police Dogs

The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority commemorated the end of training for eight police dogs in ceremonies June 14 at Grand Central Station. [More]

Public Transit Reaches Out with Art Projects

Whether it's created by students in local schools or as part of a community project, art promoting public transportation is a proven way to bring awareness and involvement to the riding public. [More]

APTA MEMBER PROFILE

Meet Angela Iannuzziello!

This is the latest in an ongoing series of columns showcasing APTA members. The subject of this profile is Angela Iannuzziello, vice president, Canada National Transit Market Sector lead, AECOM; member, APTA Board of Directors Executive Committee; member, Diversity Council; and chair, Business Members Board of Governors. [More]

MEET THE APTA STAFF

Meet Mantill Williams!

This is the latest in an ongoing series of columns showcasing members of the APTA staff. The subject of this profile is Mantill Williams, director-advocacy communications, Communications and Marketing Department. [More]

COMMENTARY

How Cities Are Fixing America: While the Federal Government Stagnates, Metropolitan Areas Lead the Way to the Future
BY BRUCE KATZ, Vice President and Director, and JENNIFER BRADLEY, Fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program, The Brookings Institution

 A revolution is stirring in America. Like all great revolutions, this one starts with a simple but profound truth: Cities and metropolitan areas are the engines of economic prosperity and social transformation in the United States. Our nation’s top 100 metropolitan areas sit on only 12 percent of the nation’s land mass but are home to two thirds of our population and generate 75 percent of our national GDP. Metros dominate because they embody concentration and agglomeration—networks of innovative firms, talented workers, risk-taking entrepreneurs, and supportive institutions and associations that cluster together in metropolitan areas and coproduce economic performance and progress. There is, in essence, no American (or Chinese or German or Brazilian) economy; rather, a national economy is a network of metropolitan economies. [More]

IN DEPTH

Open Data Presents Opportunity, Challenge for Public Transit Systems
BY KATHERINE LEWIS, Special to Passenger Transport

In recent years, the largest U.S. public transit systems have begun releasing their schedule, fare, station, real-time vehicle location, and other data to the public in easy-to-use open digital formats. Using that open data, third-party developers have created a bonanza of new mobile and web applications for customers—everything from a signal that a specific bus stop is approaching to a multimodal trip planner that integrates bus, train, and bike. [More]

TCIP Assists Public Transit App Development

An APTA standard that promotes interoperability among public transit ­system components also provides benefits to third parties wishing to provide services to the agencies and its customers. [More]

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Who's Doing What in the Industry

Passenger Transport announces the following hirings and promotions in public transportation agencies and business members. Items appear in People on the Move in the order in which they are received. [More]