Suhair Al Khatib knows safety. After years at Baltimore MTA, he's now a Commissioner for Maryland on the Washington Metro Rail Safety Commission and his job is simple. Keep passengers safe. Safety isn't just about ticking boxes or enforcing rules, it's a mindset. It's knowing that putting safety first sometimes means disrupting service. Sometimes it means inconveniencing the traveling public. Because if you don't make those tough calls and let things slide, bad things can happen. Join Paul and S...
Sep 21, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 48
Our guest host Julie Gates, award-winning broadcaster and Director of Marketing at Trapeze interviews Paul about his upcoming book Conversations on Equity and Inclusion in Public Transportation . They talk about why he wrote it, what it's about, what you'll learn from it, and most importantly what it means to Paul. We also hear from Bacarra Mauldin of MARTA reading excerpts from her forward to the book and Alex Wiggins of NORTA on the practical things he's doing for diversity and inclusion in Ne...
Sep 14, 2022•30 min•Season 5Ep. 47
We've all stood at a stop wondering when the next bus will arrive. And a lot of us have wondered why a bus didn't go where we thought it would because of a detour or closure. These are not good feelings as a rider. Steve Young, VP of Technology and Innovation at VIA Metropolitan Transit in San Antonio, TX knows a thing or two about data and customers. He and his team have pushed the limits of technology to give his customers the absolutely latest information about routes and buses. VIA riders al...
Sep 07, 2022•34 min•Season 5Ep. 46
David Scorey leads Keolis North America working with agencies across the U.S. and Canada. From starting in the trenches in the UK's rail sector to managing the MBTA commuter rail contract, and now CEO of Keolis North America, David keeps his sights on what's important to agencies and riders. David looks at transit holistically, like how he views accessibility: "When I talk about accessibility, many people think of step-free access, you know, elevators and things like that. And of course, that's ...
Aug 31, 2022•27 min•Season 5Ep. 45
Six years ago Steve Martingano challenged conventions with his innovative policing strategy at Denver RTD by pairing officers with mental health workers. He saw a lot of police interactions weren't criminal issues, but medical issues. People needed help. They needed medical care. They needed support. They needed housing. Steve talks with Paul about how after six years he's expanding his efforts beyond medical and mental health support to housing and social service access. Steve talks about chang...
Aug 24, 2022•23 min•Season 5Ep. 44
Monica Backmon, CEO of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority , has a unique job in the transit world. Her agency plans and funds transportation projects as small as traffic calming and as big as Bus Rapid Transit. And she does it across cities, towns, and counties in Northern Virginia. While often compared to a Municipal Planning Organization, NVTA has no close comparators in the United States. Her responsibility is broad and so is her mandate to help move people across her region. From...
Aug 17, 2022•32 min•Season 5Ep. 43
Paul met April Rai, CEO of COMTO (Conference of Minority Transportation Officials) at the recent COMTO conference in Miami. He sat down with April to talk about the origins of COMTO, the challenges transit is facing today, and her vision for how we'll solve them. On Transit Unplugged News and Views this week we also have: Transit news of the week Elea Carey's messaging minute Mike Bismeyer on leadership Updates from Paul about his latest book about diversity and inclusion in transit Next week on...
Aug 10, 2022•27 min•Season 5Ep. 42
This week Paul talks with a guest we've wanted to get on the show for a long, long time. When Henry Li arrived in Sacramento, the agency needed to restore both public trust in the system and financial stability for the agency. In his 7 year tenure so far he's launched the first microtransit pilot in the U.S., made the system free for kids in grades K-12, and ensured there was pay equity across his agency. His efforts have clearly paid off, Henry was named APTA CEO of the year in 2019 and SacRT w...
Aug 03, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 41
Alva Carrasco and Herold Humphrey are on a mission. A mission to increase the visibility, opportunities, and voice of Latinos in public transit. And not just when talking about issues, but more importantly in leadership positions to help the communities they serve. Alva and Herold talk with Paul about the origins of Latinos In Transit from a casual group of people working in the same industry to an organized force to encourage and support Latinos in their careers. From advocacy and mentorship to...
Jul 27, 2022•36 min•Season 5Ep. 40
Matt Tucker, Executive Director and CEO of the North County Transit District covers a huge geographic area north of San Diego. From buses to rail to a new hybrid light rail, Matt has served his region for over a decade with big plans for the future. Matt and Paul talk about all the different transportation modes, Matt's plans for going green with battery electric and hydrogen, and hints at his plans for the future of the agency. One of the longest-serving CEOs in public transit, Matt has a uniqu...
Jul 20, 2022•29 min•Season 5Ep. 39
This week Paul talks with Wiebe Wakker, sustainable adventurer about his three-year trip from the Netherlands to Australia in an EV--with no money--and then how he traveled from the Netherlands to Dubai (most) on public transport to give a keynote speech at UITP MENA earlier this year. It's a fascinating story of someone who admits wasn't really into sustainability when he started but has now become a champion for it. Learn more about Wiebe on: His Plug Me In website Facebook Twitter Instagram L...
Jul 13, 2022•32 min•Season 5Ep. 38
Charlotte Shaw, CEO of Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority, has deep experience in getting things done. From project and program management to capital planning, Charlotte is the person who makes a transit vision a reality. After years at MARTA, she came to Birmingham to manage building a bus rapid transit (BRT) for the city before it would be handed over to BJCTA. But as she tells Paul, the transit authority thought she'd be just the right person to bring BJCTA into a new era of transi...
Jul 06, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 37
This week Paul talks with Sam Morrissey from Urban Movement Labs in LA about their mandate to help the city navigate the changing face of transportation. When scooters came to the city, there were issues with where to ride them--not on the sidewalks, but maybe not the road either--and how to return them. As new transportation technologies emerge, Urban Movement Labs serves as a trusted partner working with the city and private companies to deploy new technologies the right way. Also on the show:...
Jun 29, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 36
Sam Snead is looking towards the future of transportation in Anne Arundel County, MD. From solar-lit bus stops to websites to full system maps, Sam sees up-to-date technology as crucial to success in his region. Paul talks with Sam about his career journey and then gets into Sam's ambitious Move Anne Arundel transit master plan looking forward to create sustainable, accessible, and green transit solutions for the county. Creating a robust transit system in smaller and more spread-out areas is al...
Jun 22, 2022•26 min•Season 5Ep. 35
This week on Transit Unplugged News & Views, Paul is talking with Tom Wright of the Regional Plan Association (RPA) about planning for the future in the New York Metropolitan area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut). Over its 100 year history, RPA has put a stake in the ground for what needs to be done to build and sustain the region. As Tom says, all of their recommendations are implemented--eventually. Tom talks about the RPA vision for what's needed in the region to grow in the post-p...
Jun 15, 2022•26 min•Season 5Ep. 34
Melinda Metzger is the first female Executive Director for Pace Suburban Bus, one of the largest bus and paratransit systems in the United States covering 3,500 square miles and serving 272 communities. On this week's Transit Unplugged In Depth, Melinda and Paul talk about how the great resignation has impacted public transit and how local partnerships are combating those effects. To get more bus operators at Pace, they are covering the cost of tuition at a local community college to help people...
Jun 08, 2022•26 min•Season 5Ep. 33
Jen Shepherd is passionate about public transit. As GM of Uber Transit she is responsible for helping agencies move more people, more flexibly, and more cost-effectively. In her chat with Paul, Jen talks about how Uber provides agencies tools to balance demand and resources with on-demand capacity when it wouldn't make sense to have an agency-owned vehicle on the route. One of the most exciting ways Uber is helping transit agencies is adding flexible paratransit capacity with the recently announ...
Jun 01, 2022•27 min•Season 5Ep. 32
Northeast Maglev has a vision for bringing fast--really, really fast--rail service to the Northeast Corridor (Boston to Washington D.C.). This week Paul talks with Wayne Rogers, Chairman and CEO of the Baltimore Washington Rapid Rail, LLC, and Northeast Maglev, LLC, about his vision for what maglev trains could do for the region. Faster than steel wheel-based trains, maglev trains use superconducting magnets to propel trains along at up to 311 miles an hour. Already running in Japan, where the s...
May 25, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 31
Christiaan Blake is responsible for the business of offering paratransit services that balance accommodation and sustainability. Christiaan needs to serve the most people he can with paratransit, while also creating accessible fixed-route transit that is open to all. One of the tricks up Christiaan's sleeve is his innovative rider's choice program where, if paratransit riders opt into using a taxi or service like Uber for their ride, their ride could be randomly chosen to be free. Armed with an ...
May 18, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 30
This week Paul is talking with Eulois Cleckley, Director and CEO of the Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works. Eulois manages everything from buses, trains, microtransit, and even exploring urban air mobility--yes, flying cars--along with all the roads and bridges in his county. Eulois is undertaking a massive update of the county's 3000 intersections with smart signaling technology to improve traffic flow and reduce congestion in one of the nation's most car-centric ar...
May 11, 2022•24 min•Season 5Ep. 29
In our 199th episode, Paul talks with Luc Richard, Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of Réseau de transport de la Capitale , in Quebec City, Quebec. Quebec City is one of the oldest cities in North America and one of the snowiest too. RTC delivers bus service year-round with winter weather that would shut down many transit systems. Now looking ahead to creating a more inclusive transit system, RTC created its own electric-assist bike-share service and zone-based microtransit solutio...
May 04, 2022•32 min•Season 5Ep. 28
Steve Poftak is leading the MBTA during unprecedented times. Three years into the job he's managed through a pandemic and invested billions into revamping bus and rail service across the system. The T--North America's oldest subway--is growing and adapting to new rider patterns and on the commuter rail side, he's made changes to make the largest commuter rail system in America a regional rail system people can use throughout the day to get into and out of the city. Listen to Paul and Steve talk ...
Apr 27, 2022•32 min•Season 5Ep. 27
Frequent guest Rich Sampson, Executive Director of the Southwest Transit Association , sat with Paul to give him the latest updates from D.C. on transit funding. With fiscal year 2022 appropriations set, agencies now know about their new formula fund amounts and new funding grants available to them. Elea Carey talks about how to include the leaders in your communities in your transit marketing plans. Mike Bismeyer takes a moment to thank the people who put themselves in harm's way to keep transi...
Apr 20, 2022•29 min•Season 5Ep. 26
Adelee Le Grand is a long-time transit rider. Growing up in New York, Adelee says taking transit was like brushing your teeth and toothpaste--you just did it, it's always there. Transit was how you got places and experienced things. Like Terry White , and more than a few of our guests, Adelee has spent her entire career associated with transit and moving people. You can hear Adelee's passion for transit in her descriptions of her life in New York and contrasting that with cities like Atlanta or ...
Apr 13, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 25
Sara Stickler, CEO of WTS International , chats with Paul on International Women's Day about her work supporting and creating opportunities for women in transit. Founded in the 1970s as a group providing seminars and training--since women were discouraged from joining "associations"--WTS International strives to increase opportunities for women in the transit industry. Many of the women leaders on this show--Leslie Richards, Nadine Lee, Inez Evans, and Nuria Fernandez--have all participated in W...
Apr 06, 2022•28 min•Season 5Ep. 24
This week Paul talks with Darren Kettle, CEO of Metrolink in Southern California. Not long in the job at Metrolink, Darren is a long-time transit veteran coming from Ventura County Transportation Commission and is looking forward to building and improving a critical piece of California's public transit system. Metrolink will be a key part of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, connecting many of the venues together. In the meantime, buoyed by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Darren is inves...
Mar 30, 2022•30 min•Season 5Ep. 23
This week on Transit Unplugged News and Views Paul talks with Patrick Goddard, President of Brightline Trains about high-speed rail in Florida. Brightline Trains is the only privately-held high-speed rail service in the U.S. and serves as a vital connection between South and Central and beyond. Brightline serves the niche getting people to places that are too far to drive, but too short to fly. The end goal is to make people less car-dependent; move people from their cars to something faster and...
Mar 23, 2022•28 min•Season 5Ep. 22
Continuing the series of interviews from the UITP MENA Congress and Expo earlier this year, Paul speaks with Mohammed Salim Al Ghafri, COO of Mwasalat in the Sultanate of Oman on how he's creating a transit culture in a country where private cars are cheap and affordable. One of the newer transit agencies in the world, Mwasalat manages the bus and ferry service connecting the major cities in Oman to each other and neighboring countries like the UAE. It's been an uphill battle to get people to sw...
Mar 16, 2022•23 min•Season 5Ep. 21
Noormah Noor, CEO of Express Rail Link in Malaysia has accomplished something that very few people have done--create an award-winning, world-class, and economically viable high-speed rail service. ERL runs between Kuala Lumpur and the airport connecting downtown for travelers and everyday commuters. Her service offers nonstop service, including airport check-in , from downtown to the airport. And if you'd like a white glove experience, their VIP service brings you door to door including handling...
Mar 09, 2022•39 min•Season 5Ep. 20
Terry White, General Manager of King County Metro , is a life-long public transit rider in his hometown of Seattle, Washington. He relied on transit to get him to school and work, buoyed by his mother her stack of timetables. If it wasn't for public transit, Terry wouldn't be where he is today. The experience of relying on transit and growing up on the system--including turning the signs on the bus--instilled a life-long passion for transit and a clear career path (although he never did become a...
Mar 02, 2022•36 min•Season 5Ep. 19
