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APTA Recognizes Members' Sustainability Accomplishments

APTA recognized the six newest signatories of its Sustainability Commitment, which marks continued achievements in sustainability by member organizations, July 31 during its Sustainability & Multimodal Planning Workshop in Vancouver, British Columbia. During the workshop, APTA President and CEO Paul P. Skoutelas discussed the need for the public transportation industry to transition from serving as operators of vehicles to becoming managers of multimodal, interconnected mobility services. He said the challenge is two-fold: to prepare for this evolutionary change for the future while, at the same time, excelling at meeting the needs of passengers in the present.

He explained that, by combining sustainability’s promise with critical day-to-day planning and operational issues like service configuration, route design and ridership strategies, the workshop was designed to help APTA members meet this challenge.

“Sustainability and public transportation go hand in hand,” Skoutelas said regarding the APTA Sustainability Commitment. “Thanks to the voluntary commitments that these public transit systems have made to environmental, social and economic sustainability, communities across America are now more livable. I commend this year’s public transit systems’ Sustainability Commitment recipients located in Austin, Honolulu and Phoenix. Their leadership in sustainability and the successful results of their actions should serve as an inspiration to other organizations.”

The three most recent signatories are Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Austin, TX, Gold Level status; Valley Metro, Phoenix, Silver Level; and Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation, Bronze Level. Earlier this year, APTA recognized three other agencies for achieving Silver Level status: the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority and Caltrain commuter rail and the San Mateo County Transit District, both in San Carlos, CA.

Public transit agencies and businesses voluntarily choose to join the APTA Sustainability Commitment program and pledge to implement processes and actions that create continuous improvements in environmental, social and economic sustainability. Based on specific measurable achievements, organizations are given Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze Level recognition. The program began in 2009 and now has 146 signatories, of which 46 have received higher-level recognition.

J. Barry Barker, executive director, Transit Authority of River City, Louisville, KY, and chair of the APTA Sustainability Committee and Steering Committee, addresses attendees.

From left: Barker; Robert Borowski, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority; Marwan Fadhil Al-Mukhtar, Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority; Ryan Tam and Benjamin Trevino, Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation; April Chan, San Mateo County Transit District/Caltrain commuter rail (representatives from Valley Metro not present); and Janet Gonzalez Tudor, transportation sustainability director and associate vice president, HDR, and vice chair of the APTA Sustainability Committee and Sustainability Steering Committee. Photos courtesy Sara Borck Photography

 

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