• BREAKING NEWS
• NEWS HEADLINES
• MEET THE APTA STAFF
• 2015: THE YEAR IN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
• APTA NEWS
• AROUND THE INDUSTRY
• CASE STUDY
• COMMENTARY
• PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

2015: THE YEAR IN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

APTA Rallied Its Members to Promote Public Transit

Here’s a brief review of some of APTA’s 2015 initiatives and programs as they were covered in Passenger Transport.

January
APTA called on its members to advocate for passage of a long-term surface transportation bill following the November 2014 election that brought Republican majorities to both the House and Senate, and the subsequent extension of MAP-21 through May 31. (Congress additionally extended MAP-21 to July 31.)

APTA Chair Phillip Washington called for Stand Up for Transportation Day (SU4T) on April 9, a national event to highlight the urgent need for long-term funding.

Members of the APTA Business Member Board of Governors (BMBG) reported on BMBG’s support for advocacy efforts, including SU4T, during their Annual Business Meeting.

February
In response to the release of President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2016 budget, which included $94.7 billion in discretionary and mandatory funding for DOT, APTA President & CEO Michael Melaniphy said, “I applaud President Obama for highlighting the importance of investing in our country’s transportation so that economic prosperity and global competitiveness continue.”

Washington reported on SU4T efforts at the 2015 Transit CEOs Seminar, saying, “This growing movement is about getting the [transportation authorization] bill that the nation needs.”

March
In a Passenger Transport commentary distributed at the APTA Legislative Conference in Washington, DC, APTA Legislative Committee Chair J. Barry Barker called on members to “make a strong, effective case for a long-term, fully funded transportation bill that will put public transportation on solid ground and help our communities grow and thrive.”

Speakers at the three-day conference included FTA Acting Administrator Therese McMillan, FRA then-Acting Administrator Sarah Feinberg, Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Dean Heller (R-NV), Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and the mayors of Mesa, AZ, Fort Worth, TX, and Riverton, UT. Representatives of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Road and Transportation Builders Association joined Washington and Melaniphy at the Opening General Session to support SU4T.

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory, Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker and John Cox, director of Wyoming DOT, testified before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that they foresaw significant disruption in long-range transportation infrastructure projects if Congress did not pass a long-term surface transportation bill.

Senior leaders from public transportation agencies participated in two invitation-only special roundtables on Capitol Hill, one for bus and one for rail, hosted by the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee regarding issues that must be addressed in transportation authorization legislation.

Jeff Morales, chief executive officer of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, reported on the positive impact of the project on the state’s future at a meeting for rail industry representatives in APTA’s Washington, DC, offices.

April
SU4T Day brought together more than 360 entities from across the country, representing small, medium and large communities. Public transit passengers and elected officials joined business, community and transportation leaders at more than 150 events from rallies at public transit stations and educational programs for students to tours of facilities and manufacturing plants. In addition, #standup4publictransportation was the third highest trending topic on social media that day.

Fifteen APTA members participated in a study mission that included stops in London, Stockholm and Munich. They met with city and regional representatives, public transit professionals, elected leaders and real estate developers to discuss financial solutions that can maximize the benefit of public transit to both individuals and the community. The mission was an outgrowth of APTA’s first International Practicum on Innovative Transit Funding and Financing, held immediately before the 2014 Rail Conference in Montréal.

Melaniphy testified before the Senate Banking Committee to encourage Congress to enact a six-year, $100 billion authorization for the federal public transit program that would allow funding to grow from $10.7 billion in the current year to $22.2 billion in 2021.

APTA and the Environment and Energy Study Institute (EESI) held a joint briefing about the looming expiration of the transportation bill and the need to ensure stable, long-term federal investment in infrastructure.

May
In remarks at the APTA Bus & Paratransit Conference in Fort Worth, Washington (who identified himself as APTA members’ “chief transportation advocate” when he took the reins as chair in October 2014) called SU4T “one of the most impressive events in APTA’s 100-year history.” He credited APTA and its members for starting a movement in support of public transportation.

The conference also included a Veterans Job Fair, a Products & Services Showcase with more than 150 vendors, the International Bus Roadeo with almost 200 participants and graduation ceremonies for the 2015 class of the Early Career Program, among dozens of educational sessions.

During Infrastructure Week, APTA joined the National League of Cities and the National Association of Regional Councils in presenting a Capitol Hill briefing on public transportation’s impact on the nation’s competitiveness, its contributions to economies based on knowledge and information and its ability to help attract high-tech employers and a skilled workforce to communities across the nation.

APTA hosted its annual National ­Public Transportation Career Day.

APTA was an endorsing organization for the Alliance to Save Energy’s Energy Efficiency Global Forum (EE Global) in Washington, DC, held for energy officials, business executives, efficiency advocates and academic experts.

June
APTA celebrated the 10th anniversary of Dump the Pump Day, during which a record 176 public transit agencies and 46 other groups participated to promote public transit in lieu of driving cars.

More than 1,200 passenger rail professionals attended the 2015 Rail Conference in Salt Lake City. Washington again cited the success of SU4T but emphasized that the push for a long-term bill was not over. “Too many of us are operating 21st-century vehicles on 19th-century infrastructure,” he said.

During the conference, Melaniphy signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Eduardo Romo, president, Fundación Caminos de Hierro, a Spanish nonprofit dedicated to research into the field of engineering and railway technology.

Melaniphy spoke about the health benefits of public transportation on a panel discussion during the UITP World Congress and Exhibition in Milan, Italy.

At a hearing before the House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials, Feinberg testified that FRA would enforce the Dec. 31 deadline for PTC implementation and would impose penalties on railroads that had not fully implemented the technology, beginning Jan. 1, 2016. FRA could not extend the deadline, she explained; Congress would have to pass legislation to do so.

APTA received top awards for its publications and marketing efforts, including articles in Passenger Transport, a special safety and security publication, a direct mail catalog and an advocacy video.

Melaniphy met with Mioshi Moses, new president and chief executive officer, Conference of Minority Transportation Officials, to discuss the organizations’ long-standing partnership following an APTA-COMTO DBE Assembly at the Rail Conference.

Fifty high school juniors and seniors from around the country converged in Washington, DC, to participate in the APTA Youth Summit.

More than half of Americans who planned to vacation in a U.S. city in the summer of 2015—almost 89 million people—said they would use public transportation for at least one activity, according to APTA’s annual “Travel Like a Local” Summer Travel Survey.

July
APTA released its strategic plan for 2015-2019, The Way Forward, which emphasizes five key challenges and opportunities facing the industry: safety and security first, resource advocacy, workforce development, demographic shifts and technological innovation.

Melaniphy participated in the White House Conference on Aging, which examined issues important to older Americans, including mobility options.

APTA commemorated the 25th anniversary of ADA (signed by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990) with a special publication, “Celebrating 25 Years of Access and Mobility,” which looked back on the achievements of the past quarter century and forward to innovations in mobility management. Also, APTA Vice President of Workforce Development and Educational Services Pam Boswell attended an event in the East Room to honor the anniversary of ADA.

APTA’s business members hosted the first Passenger Rail Engineering Education Symposium (p-REES), co-sponsored by the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association. More than 50 industry professionals and college and university professors participated in the event in Philadelphia, which encouraged colleges and universities to include public transportation in their curricula.

August
APTA urged all of its members to reach out to their congressional representatives during the August recess to thank them for taking action to approve short-term funding for MAP-21 (which had been set to expire on July 31). APTA developed the “August Recess Outreach Toolkit,” which included sample letters to members of Congress, a list of local town hall meetings and model op-eds and letters to the editor.

September
Kathy Waters, APTA executive vice president for member services, announced that she will retire effective Jan. 8, 2016, following a distinguished career in public transportation. Former APTA chair and longtime industry executive Richard White joined APTA as vice president for member services and will succeed Waters upon her retirement.

October
The APTA Diversity Council launched an initiative to address inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered individuals in the industry with a listening session during the APTA Annual Meeting in San Francisco.

Valarie J. McCall, a member of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority Board of Trustees, succeeded Washington as APTA chair at the Annual Meeting. McCall’s initiatives include a focus on collaboration within the association and with other organizations, including the U.S. Conference of Mayors, National League of Cities and the National Council of Regional Councils. She appointed the Task Force on Member Collaboration, three co-chairs (one from each sector of APTA membership: agencies, businesses and transit board members) and 15 individuals.

Doran Barnes, executive director of Foothill Transit in West Covina, CA, moved from secretary-treasurer to vice chair, and Kim Green, executive director of business development, Genfare, became ­secretary-treasurer.

Among other highlights were remarks by DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx, a conversation with FTA officials including Acting Administrator Therese McMillan, a multi-part examination of integrated mobility and how new technologies will affect public transit and a panel discussion on ADA 25 years after its enactment.

APTA welcomed the two newest members of its Hall of Fame: Jerome “Jerry” Premo, principal, Premo Partnerships, Orange, CA, a public transit professional for almost 50 years, and the late Elonzo “Lonnie” Hill, a 35-year employee of the Chicago Transit Authority.

APTA moved into its new offices at 1300 I St. NW, Suite 1200 East, Washington, DC 20005.

November
APTA partnered with the Transportation Research Board to host the 2015 National Light Rail & Streetcar Conference in Minneapolis. The conference, held every three years, features sessions that showcase the positive results evident in metropolitan areas that have embraced light rail and streetcars and explore new ways to plan, design, construct, maintain and operate these systems.

APTA released a survey showing that more than seven in 10 people across all age groups and political affiliations support increased federal funding for public transportation systems that serve communities of all sizes.

December
The House and Senate approved, and President Obama signed, a five-year, $281 billion fully-funded surface transportation authorization bill titled “Fixing America’s Surface Transportation” (FAST) Act. Melaniphy said, “As the first long-term surface transportation bill in 10 years, the significance of this legislation cannot be overstated.”

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), a longtime supporter of high-speed rail and other public transit and sustainability initiatives, addressed an APTA High-Speed Rail Policy Forum, “Getting to the Tipping Point for High-Speed Rail in the U.S.: The Role of Federal Government in High-Speed and Intercity Rail Development,” at APTA’s offices in Washington.

The APTA Task Force on Member Collaboration, created by McCall at the Annual Meeting, convened for the first time to prepare its agenda, explore new opportunities and plan specific activities.

« Previous Article Return to Top Next Article »