Paul was at the UITP Middle East North Africa Conference and Expo in Dubai, UAE recently and this is the first of several interviews from his trip. The first is with Alexander Pazuchanics, Head of Policy & Partnerships at Vianova I/O. Alexander and Paul talk about something we don't hear much about these days, ever really--managing curb space. Not just for parking, but travel and making the best use of this public space throughout the day. We also hear from Elea Carey and Mike Bismeyer this ...
Feb 23, 2022•32 min•Season 5Ep. 18
Here's part two of our Legacy Leaders Series ( listen to part 1 ) where Paul taps into decades of leadership, perspective, and insight from some of the foremost leaders in the public transit industry. In this episode we hear from: Paul Toliver Grace Crunican Peter Varga Mike Scanlon The advice in this episode is second to none and everyone, no matter your role, can take something away from this to do their jobs better. Next week we bring the first in a series of interviews Paul recorded while at...
Feb 16, 2022•50 min•Season 5Ep. 17
Have you ever wondered how people get training on running a public transit agency? Public transit is a very complex business/service to run, so how do you learn everything you need to know? The answer is the National Transit Institute at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Paul talks with Executive Director Billy Terry about NTI and everything it does. Like having to switch from 98% in-person classes taught around the U.S. to 100% virtual classes taught remotely. We also hear from Elea ...
Feb 09, 2022•35 min•Season 5Ep. 16
This is the first of two special episodes where Paul chats with some of the leading figures in public transit. These are the people who built the foundations and set the standards for how public transit is done. Their perspectives are absolutely not to be missed. On part one of the series are: Paul Toliver Fred Gilliam Robert Prince Rod Diridon See the full show notes on TransitUnplugged.com for their links and contact information. Next week on Transit Unplugged News & Views we have Bill Ter...
Feb 02, 2022•34 min•Season 5Ep. 15
In the public transit industry, we are all standing on the shoulders of giants. People who set the stage for the progress we're making now. The next several episodes on Transit Unplugged epitomize this fact looking back powering our way forward. This week Paul talks with Karen Philbrick, Executive Director of the Mineta Transportation Institute . Named for Secretary Norman Mineta, the Institute conducts and supports research on a wide range of public transportation topics and issues. In their in...
Jan 26, 2022•38 min•Season 5Ep. 14
On today's special edition of Transit Unplugged. We want it to honor the memory of Jeff Parker, CEO of MARTA in Atlanta, after his recent tragic death. He was a strong leader for his city and our industry, and will be sorely missed. Original show notes from February, 2020: “While we have to think about the future, we also have to think about the here and now and making sure that we’re improving the customer experience.” Atlanta and the surrounding area is the third fastest-growing region in the ...
Jan 21, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 13
This week Paul catches up with Laura Koprowski, CEO of Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority ( TARTA ) and they talk about Laura's plan to revitalize TARTA with a new leadership team, new branding, and a new focus on customer experience. Laura and Paul also talk about the successful ballot measures that will help TARTA expand service and have a stable financial future. Next week, Paul interviews Karen Philbrick of the Mineta Institute with her views on public transit. If you have questions, com...
Jan 19, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 12
This week we have a special double interview episode on Transit Unplugged News and Views . Paul, and special guest Mischa Wanek-Libman Executive Editor of Mass Transit Magazine , speak with two of Mass Transit's 40 Under 40 honorees. We start the show with Shofi Ull Azum, MBA , Operational Innovations and Performance Manager, Kansas City Area Transportation Authority ( KCATA ), followed by Brittney M. Farr, Esq. , Director of Government Relations, Denton County Transportation Authority ( DCTA )....
Jan 12, 2022•35 min•Season 5Ep. 11
This week Paul chats with Kevin Quinn, CEO of TransLink in Vancouver, BC. Kevin succeeded Paul as CEO of MTA Baltimore and now is the head of a multi-city transit network in one of the most beautiful parts of the world. Kevin talks about managing North America's largest autonomous subway systems (SkyTrain), the major expansion projects underway, and life in Vancouver. Next week on Transit Unplugged Paul interviews two of Mass Transit Magazine' s 40 Under 40 with Mass Transit Magazine's Executive...
Jan 05, 2022•27 min•Season 5Ep. 10
It's the end of the year and the last episode of Transit Unplugged for 2021. This is a really special episode with Paul Comfort convening a panel with our producer Tris Hussey, regular contributors Elea Carey and Mike Bismeyer, and a special guest Mike Dukart, Dir. of Sales at TripSpark. On the show, we talk about what are going to be the hottest trends in 2022, and a little look back at the past year. We hope you enjoy it. Next week (and next year), we'll have Kevin Quinn the new CEO at TransLi...
Dec 29, 2021•33 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Welcome to our second special episode of Transit Unplugged, the Best of Transit Unplugged In-Depth. In this episode, you'll hear excerpts from five of the best interviews this year. You'll hear ... Anne Graham, National Transport Authority, Ireland ( full episode ) Ahmed Bahrozyan, Road and Transport Authority, Dubai, UAE ( full episode ) Leslie Richards, SEPTA ( full episode ) Nat Ford, Jacksonville Transport Authority ( full episode ) Jeremy Yap, Land Transport Authority, Singapore ( full epis...
Dec 22, 2021•52 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Kicking off a trio of special episodes on Transit Unplugged is a transit tech episode with guest host Tris Hussey. Tris interviews Daniel Saddy, Director of (IT) Architecture at Trapeze about cyber and computer security at transit agencies with real, concrete advice on how agencies can help protect themselves. Then we have a special technology expert panel with Sebastian Vaitus, VP of Innovation at Vontas, Priyanka Palacholla, Sr. Director of New Product Initiatives at Vontas, Tyler Dvorak, Prod...
Dec 15, 2021•32 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Paul returns to the island nation of Singapore to chat with Mr. Lee Ling Wee, Deputy Group CEO and President, International, SMRT Corporation. Like his earlier interview with Jeremy Yap earlier this year, the conversation focuses on how Singapore and SMRT are innovating and pushing towards a low/no emissions future. Paul sets the stage for the interview with Trapeze General Manager for the ASEAN region Frank Hesse. Frank makes his home in Kuala Lumpur and offers great context into public transit...
Dec 08, 2021•27 min•Season 5Ep. 6
In our final episode from APTA EXPO 2021, Paul chats with Jane Grogg, Director of Sarasota County Area Transit . If there was one singular thing that is the hallmark of the post-COVID transit world, it's on-demand microtransit. Jane Grogg replaced fixed routes that had lower ridership and replaced them with on-demand microtransit. And it's been a smashing success! Typically these low ridership fixed routes also tend to have big headways (30 minutes or more between buses), which means people aren...
Dec 01, 2021•31 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Update: An audio issue kept one of the panelists from being heard. We've pushed out an updated audio track. In the second of three APTA EXPO special episodes, this week it's the highlight of the week--the special panel of the 5 top women leading transit today. Nadine Lee (CEO, Dallas DART ), Leslie Richards (CEO, SEPTA ), Lauren Skiver (CEO, SunLine Transit ), MJ Maynard (CEO, RTC SNV ), and Bacarra Sanderson Mauldin (Chief of Staff, MATA Transit ) shared the stage and talked about their visions...
Nov 24, 2021•48 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Paul and Tris were at APTA EXPO 2021 in Orlando, FL last week and recorded several interviews while they were there. From "Get to Know the GM" with the heads of Vontas and Trapeze Group and interviews with transit leaders to our amazing panel of amazing women leading transit agencies in the U.S., Paul and Tris covered a lot of ground in a few days. This week we highlight two of the interviews from those three days. First up is Chris Harris, Associate Director of Transportation at Auburn Universi...
Nov 17, 2021•28 min•Season 5Ep. 3
This week's episode comes to you from Las Vegas, Nevada when Paul visited RTC of Southern Nevada CEO MJ Maynard and her team. These segments are excerpted from the upcoming Transit Unplugged TV episode--the first episode for Transit Unplugged TV. Also in this episode are Deputy CEOs Francis Julien and David Swallow as well as Antonette Braddock who talks about RTC's new mobile app for their network. At RTC MJ Maynard and her team are doing great things for their community. They used COVID relief...
Nov 10, 2021•31 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Welcome to season 5! Kicking off Season 5, Episode 1 we have a chat with Roger Helmy, Director of Product Management at Modaxo. Then Paul talks with regular contributor Mike Bismeyer about his Kindness is Cool campaign. We hear from Elea Carey on how to keep your messaging relevant and top of mind for riders. And finally, Paul and Tris talk about everything going on at APTA EXPO 2021. Paul will be at the Trapeze-Vontas booth (booth 353) talking with GMs Teresa Domingo and Peter Aczel from 11-12:...
Nov 03, 2021•32 min•Season 5Ep. 1
This week's show is an edited re-broadcast of the UITP and Trapeze-sponsored Connected Journeys webinar from earlier this summer. Paul leads a discussion with: Abimbola Akinajo, CEO, Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) Ahmed Bahrozyan, CEO, Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) Djan Fanny, Director of Operations, AMUGA About what they are doing to promote public transit and develop more integrated, connected journeys in their cities. This episode brings home how, around the ...
Oct 27, 2021•50 min•Season 4Ep. 55
This is a very special Transit Unplugged News and Views. This week we not only hear from Katrina Heineking and W.C. Pihl from Transdev about autonomous vehicles, but Paul reveals all the things going on at APTA EXPO in a few weeks. In the news segment, Paul gives you all the details on what's going on with Transit Unplugged, Transit Unplugged TV, and the other places you can find him at APTA EXPO. If you'd like to stay in the loop about everything that's going on, and get reminders when events a...
Oct 20, 2021•34 min•Season 4Ep. 54
Paul travelled to Nashville, TN to talk with Nashville MTA CEO Steve Bland and his leadership team about all the improvements and innovations they've done in the past year. From safety to route planning to stations and stops, there is little that they haven't improved on. Which is, of course, music to our ears. This episode was also filmed for an upcoming episode of Transit Unplugged TV. People you will hear: Steve Bland, Nashville MTA CEO Approaches to COVID Response and Workplace Safety – Nick...
Oct 13, 2021•58 min•Season 4Ep. 53
One of the biggest challenges at transit agencies during the pandemic has been making sure there was enough money to stay in operation. In New Mexico, the Department of Transportation took a unique approach that underscores the spirit of cooperation we found throughout the transit industry. They funded the operating expenses for the 21 transit agencies in the state and were able to do that because the three largest agencies in the state agreed to forego their share of federal funding to help the...
Oct 06, 2021•25 min•Season 4Ep. 52
As a woman in transit and the tech industry, it’s not every day that you get to see female leaders in transit share how they got to where they are today and the hurdles they had to overcome to do so. Transit has traditionally been a male-dominated industry; and years ago, it would’ve been rare to see a female CEO rise up the ranks. It’s inspiring that that’s no longer the case. On today’s episode of Transit Unplugged, we put together more than just an interview with one female transit leader – f...
Sep 29, 2021•54 min•Season 4Ep. 51
More and more agencies are going green and reducing their carbon emissions. There are lots of ways to get there, but one that isn't talked about often is hydrogen fuel cell electric buses. Karl Gnadt of Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District is serious about going zero emissions. And truly zero emissions. In October his agency will open its solar-powered hydrogen generating and fueling complex and deploy its first hydrogen fuel cell electric buses. Making this deployment truly zero emissions. No...
Sep 22, 2021•30 min•Season 4Ep. 50
Julien Dehornoy, CEO of Yarra Trams , is responsible for the iconic Melbourne streetcar tram system. This is storied tram system has run continuously since 1884 and is the longest light rail system in the world. Which is a blessing and a curse. Julien wants to modernize the tram system to make it more efficient, more nimble, more accessible, and faster. But that's easier said than done when you're working with legacy systems. In this episode, you'll hear about Julien's vision for the future of t...
Sep 15, 2021•35 min•Season 4Ep. 49
It's not often you get the results of a customer survey and the results clearly say, "we think you're doing great, can you do more of it please?". But that's what David Bruffy of Mountain Line Transit in Morgantown, West Virginia found when he got feedback from his community. And while his plans for helping his community, including microtransit and helping the unbanked in a universal fare program, are important, just as important is what he does to recharge. David runs Smoke n Mirrors Photograph...
Sep 08, 2021•23 min•Season 4Ep. 48
Imagine starting your transit career as a driver when you were nineteen and then going on to launch an entirely new transit service for one agency and now at the helm to launch a revamped service for an up-and-coming transit agency. This is what Josh Baker of DASH (Alexandria Transit) has done in his career thus far with more great plans on the way. This is one of those "wow, that's amazing" interviews from a person who has done and tried almost everything there is to do in transit. Josh and Pau...
Sep 01, 2021•35 min•Season 4Ep. 47
This week on Transit Tech, Tris interviews Tyler Dvorak of Trapeze and Terry Bills of Esri about the how and why of using data at your agency. Combining data sets, especially spatial and demographic data, gives transit agencies tremendous decision making power. Learn why the agencies who most effectively use data to learn about customers and make decisions are also the agencies who are most successful at delivering services to those customers. In her Messaging Minute, Elea Carey talks back to sc...
Aug 25, 2021•29 min•Season 4Ep. 46
This episode of Transit Unplugged In-Depth comes from the SUN Conference in Missoula, Montana. Paul sat down with Scott Bogren of CTAA , Ed Redfern of The Bus Coalition , Rich Sampson of SWATA , and Elea Carey to talk about the massive infrastructure bill that just passed the U.S. Senate. In this very special episode, Paul and the guests dive into why this bill could be a historic, watershed moment for public transit in the U.S. The pandemic opened eyes at all levels of government that public tr...
Aug 18, 2021•39 min•Season 4Ep. 45
This week on Transit Unplugged News and Views we have two Newsmaker interviews. First Paul chats with John Seber Executive Director of the Central Indiana Regional Transport Authority (CIRTA) and they get into how John is helping the counties he serves work together and provide an integrated intercounty transit network. John also reflects on when he was working with Paul at WMATA and how a college poster sticks with him today. If that wasn't enough, Paul chats with Stewart Mader and Scott Bogren...
Aug 11, 2021•37 min•Season 4Ep. 44
