APTA's 2016 Annual Meeting in Los Angeles attracted more than 2,500 attendees (exceeding last year's total) on Sept. 11-14.  APTA Acting President & CEO Richard White opened the meeting, which included 15 technical tours, 46 concurrent sessions and workshops, 64 committee meetings, and 187 exhibitors – a record high – at the Products & Services Showcase, as well as important speakers from public transportation, government, business and academia.  There were also notable presentations on the 2016 political outlook, diversity and inclusion, and transformational leadership.

LA Metro Chair John Fasana and CEO Phil Washington welcomed the attendees to Los Angeles and, together with the LA Metro employees, were outstanding hosts.

In his first remarks as APTA Chair, Doran J. Barnes, executive director of Foothill Transit (West Covina, CA), described his top priorities: safety and security; working with a new Administration and Congress; APTA’s governance and bylaws review; CEO search; diversity and inclusion; and increased value for all APTA members.

In addition to Barnes as the new APTA Chair, other incoming officers included Nathaniel P. Ford Sr., CEO of Jacksonville Transportation Authority, as Vice Chair; Kim R. Green, executive director of business development at GENFARE, as Secretary / Treasurer; and Valarie J. McCall, board member of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, as Immediate Past Chair.

To view a video of the Opening Session, click here.  Additional videos will be posted on the APTA website next week.  Passenger Transport will feature articles and photos from Annual Meeting sessions.  Also, the just-released 2016 Annual Report can be viewed here.

APTA Honors Top Public Transportation Leaders and Campaigns

The 2016 APTA Awards recognized 18 individuals and organizations that advanced the public transportation industry for millions of people.  Among the winners announced at a luncheon during the Annual Meeting on Sept. 13 were three public transit agencies competing in different ridership categories, two agencies for innovation, and 13 individuals, including five new inductees to APTA’s Hall of Fame.  Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti gave congratulatory remarks at the start of the event.  Read the full list of honorees here.

APTA also presented its annual AdWheel Awards to 11 public transit agencies and businesses that created outstanding campaigns to increase ridership or sales, highlight transit funding needs, or educate the public and/or employees about safety, environmental efforts, or ridership services.
Read about the winning campaigns here.

$200 Billion in Public Transit Spending at Stake on Nov. 8

During this year's Annual Meeting, APTA held a press conference highlighting the historic number of public transit ballot initiatives that will be decided by voters on Election Day 2016.  More than 30 local communities and states have proposed measures to expand, repair and improve public transportation services.

Public transit leaders from the BART District (San Francisco), COTA (Columbus, OH), LA Metro, MARTA (Atlanta), Sound Transit (Seattle), and VTA (Santa Clara, CA) explained the importance of these proposed infrastructure investments.  Read APTA's press release.

FTA Announces $211 Million in Grants for New Buses, Facilities

FTA recently announced the recipients of its Bus and Bus Facilities Grant Program that will help provide more modern, reliable bus service for transit riders across the country.  The list includes 61 projects in 41 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands that will receive a share of nearly $211 million to replace, rehabilitate, and purchase transit buses and related equipment, and construct bus-related facilities.  See the grant recipients here.

In a show of growing transit infrastructure needs, demand for FTA’s Bus Program far exceeded available funds, as FTA received 284 applications from 47 states totaling more than $1.6 billion.

SAVE THE DATE

Mark Your Calendar!  Here's a list of APTA's major meetings in 2017:

Transit CEOs Seminar, San Diego, CA
Feb. 11-14

Legislative Conference, Washington, DC
March 12-14

Bus & Paratransit Conference & International Bus Roadeo, Reno, NV
Roadeo:  May 5-9
Conference:  May 7-10

Rail Conference & International Rail Rodeo, Baltimore, MD
Rodeo:  June 8-11
Conference:  June 11-14

Transit Board Members & Board Support Seminar, Chicago, IL
July 22-25

Annual Meeting & EXPO, Atlanta, GA
Annual Meeting:  October 8-11
EXPO:  October 9-11

IN THE MEDIA

Op-Ed by Richard White: "We Urgently Need to Mend Our Broken Infrastructure."
Newsweek online edition; Sept. 9

City Council Says Yes to Sales Tax Hike
MyNewsLA.com; Sept. 14


Want to Ditch the Car? Visit Cleveland!
USA Today Readers' Choice - Best Car-Free Cities

NOTABLE & QUOTABLE

"With approximately $200 billion in funding for public transportation [proposed in local and state ballot initiatives on Nov. 8], this is a game changer for our industry."

                                                                                               Richard A. White
                                                                                               APTA Acting President & CEO
                                                                                               Sept. 13, 2016