APTA's successful Bus & Paratransit Conference and International Bus Roadeo attracted 1,838 attendees to Tampa, FL, May 6-9. APTA Chair Nathaniel P. Ford Sr., chief executive officer of the Jacksonville (FL) Transportation Authority, opened the conference and thanked Jeff Seward, interim chief executive officer, Hillsborough Area Regional Transport (HART); Brad Miller, chief executive officer, Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA); and their staffs for hosting the conference and roadeo.
Conference highlights included an FTA session featuring Acting Administrator K. Jane Williams, who discussed federal funding for public transportation and the agency’s support for industry innovation; the Products & Services Showcase and Bus Display with 135 vendors and 20 vehicles; the International Bus Roadeo; and sessions on topics including such new bus technologies as zero-emission engines and automated vehicles, the role of transportation during emergencies, how public transit can deal with human trafficking, and procurement issues. Click here to view NBC News Ch8 coverage of the event.
Reinforcing public transit’s leading role in the shifting transportation paradigm, Ford remarked how: “We are going through one of the most transformative periods in our industry since the advent of the automobile. New service models, private rideshare companies and innovative technologies like autonomous vehicles and electric vehicles will redefine how we operate, how we think and how we serve our communities.” View a Fox 13 News interview with Ford at the International Bus Roadeo here.
APTA President and CEO Paul P. Skoutelas noted that this was one of the largest turnouts in anybody’s memory for an APTA Bus Conference. Skoutelas told the audience that public transportation is a healthy, vitally important and growing industry. “Very few people realize the enormity of what public transportation does on a daily basis to get people where they need to go,” he said.
At the Opening General Session on Monday, Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL) and Florida state Sen. Jeffrey Brandes (R) welcomed APTA, joining Seward and Miller. Keynote speaker Gabe Klein discussed the trends that are defining a new role for public transportation, and highlighted critical issues to be addressed by public transit leaders including innovation, communication, collaboration, complete streets policies and more.
The International Bus Roadeo top winners are:
> Overall Excellence
- Grand Champion — Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
- 2nd Place Honors — Orange County (CA) Transportation Authority
- 3rd Place Honors — AC Transit, Oakland, CA
> 40-foot Bus Operator, 1st Place — Kevin Grady, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency
> 35-foot Bus Operator, 1st Place — Jeremiah Gardner, Greater Lynchburg (VA) Transit Company
> Maintenance Team, 1st Place — Foothill Transit, West Covina, CA
The Customer Service Challenge winner was:
> John Ybarra of the Norwalk (CA) Transit System
APTA also announced the following winners of the 2018 Bus Safety & Security Excellence Awards:
GOLD Awards for Safety:
> Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (more than 20 million trips annually)
> Santa Monica’s (CA) Big Blue Bus (more than 4 million and fewer than 20 million trips annually)
> Knoxville (TN) Area Transit (fewer than 4 million trips annually)
GOLD Awards for Security:
> Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Houston (more than 20 million trips annually)
> Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority/Metro, Cincinnati (more than 4 million and fewer than 20 million trips annually)
Certificates of Merit for Safety Excellence:
> Metro Transit, Minneapolis-St. Paul (more than 20 million trips annually)
> Palm Tran, West Palm Beach, FL (more than 4 million and fewer than 20 million trips annually)
> Lee County Transit, Fort Myers, FL (fewer than 4 million trips annually)
Certificates of Merit for Security:
> King County Metro Transit Division/DOT, Seattle (more than 20 million trips annually)
> Transit Authority of River City, Louisville, KY (more than 4 million and fewer than 20 million trips annually)
More coverage of APTA’s 2018 Bus & Paratransit Conference will appear in the May 21 issue of Passenger Transport.
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