Transit Unplugged
Episodes
Steve Young — VIA Metropolitan Transit
07 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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&nb...
David Scorey – CEO Keolis North America
31 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 man...
Steve Martingano — Denver RTD Transit Police
24 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Six years ago Steve Martingano challenged conventions with his innovative policing strategy at Denver RTD by pairing officers with mental health worke...
Monica Backmon — Northern Virginia Transportation Authority
17 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Monica Backmon, CEO of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, has a unique job in the transit world. Her agency plans and funds transportatio...
April Rai CEO COMTO
10 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
Henry Li — SacRT
03 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 res...
Alva Carrasco and Herold Humphrey — Latinos In Transit
27 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Alva Carrasco and Herold Humphrey are on a mission. A mission to increase the visibility, opportunities, and voice of Latinos in public transit. And n...
Matt Tucker North County Transit District
20 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Wiebe Wakker Sustainable Adventurer from Plug Me In
13 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week Paul talks with Wiebe Wakker, sustainable adventurer about his three-year trip from the Netherlands to Australia in an EV--with no mone...
Charlotte Shaw Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority
06 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Charlotte Shaw, CEO of Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority, has deep experience in getting things done. From project and program management ...
Sam Morrissey — Urban Movement Labs
29 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 transportati...
Sam Snead — Anne Arundel County Department of Transportation
22 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 se...
Tom Wright — Regional Plan Association
15 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Transit Unplugged News & Views, Paul is talking with Tom Wright of the Regional Plan Association (RPA) about planning for the future ...
Melinda Metzger — Pace Suburban Bus
08 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Melinda Metzger is the first female Executive Director for Pace Suburban Bus, one of the largest bus and paratransit systems in the United States cove...
Jen Shepherd — GM Uber Transit
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Jen Shepherd is passionate about public transit. As GM of Uber Transit she is responsible for helping agencies move more people, more flexibly, and mo...
Wayne Rogers — Northeast Maglev
25 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Northeast Maglev has a vision for bringing fast--really, really fast--rail service to the Northeast Corridor (Boston to Washington D.C.). This week Pa...
Christiaan Blake, Managing Dir, Dept of Access Services, WMATA
18 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Christiaan Blake is responsible for the business of offering paratransit services that balance accommodation and sustainability. Christiaan ...
Eulois Cleckley Miami-Dade Department of Transportation and Public Works
11 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week Paul is talking with Eulois Cleckley, Director and CEO of the Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works. Eulois manage...
Luc Richard RTC Quebec City
04 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In our 199th episode, Paul talks with Luc Richard, Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of Réseau de transport de la Capitale, in Queb...
Steve Poftak – MBTA
27 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Steve Poftak is leading the MBTA during unprecedented times. Three years into the job he's managed through a pandemic and invested billions into ...
Rich Sampson, Southwest Transit Association
20 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Frequent guest Rich Sampson, Executive Director of the Southwest Transit Association, sat with Paul to give him the latest updates from D.C. on transi...
Adelee Le Grand. CEO HART
13 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Sara Stickler, CEO WTS International
06 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sara Stickler, CEO of WTS International, chats with Paul on International Women's Day about her work supporting and creating opportunities for women i...
Darren Kettle, CEO Metrolink
30 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 vete...
Patrick Goddard — Brightline Trains
23 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Transit Unplugged News and Views Paul talks with Patrick Goddard, President of Brightline Trains about high-speed rail in Florida. Bright...
Mohammed Salim Al Ghafri — COO Mwasalat, Oman
16 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Noormah Noor Express Rail Link
09 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Noormah Noor, CEO of Express Rail Link in Malaysia has accomplished something that very few people have done--create an award-winning, world-clas...
Terry White Interview Ripple Effect
02 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Alexander Pazuchanics and reports from UITP MENA
23 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Legacy Leaders Part 2: Paul Toliver, Peter Varga, Grace Crunican, and Mike Scanlon
16 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
Billy Terry On Delivering Training for Better Transit
09 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Legacy Leaders Part 1: Paul Toliver, Fred Gilliam, Robert Prince, Rod Diridon
02 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 foun...
Karen Philbrick Researching the Future of Public Transit at the Mineta Institute
26 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 s...
In Memoriam: Jeffrey Parker
21 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Laura Koprowski Reinvigorating TARTA’s Role in the Community
19 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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 T...
Mass Transit 40 Under 40 Looking Ahead to a Bright Transit Future
12 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week we have a special double interview episode on Transit Unplugged News and Views. Paul, and special guest Mischa Wanek-Libman Executive Editor...
Kevin Quinn focusing on the fundamentals and network expansion at TransLink
05 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
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-...
What will public transit look like in 2022?
29 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
Best of Transit Unplugged In Depth for 2021
22 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
Special Transit Technology Episode: Cybersecurity and transit tech in 2022
15 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Kicking off a trio of special episodes on Transit Unplugged is a transit tech episode with guest host Tris Hussey.Tris interviews Daniel Saddy, Direct...
Innovation, growth, and expansion in Singapore with Lee Ling Wee
08 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Paul returns to the island nation of Singapore to chat with Mr. Lee Ling Wee, Deputy Group CEO and President, International, SMRT Corporation. Like hi...
On Demand Microtransit taking off in Sarasota, Florida
01 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Transit Leaders Panel: 5 of the most powerful women in transit today
24 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 speci...
Live from APTA EXPO 2021: It’s electric with Chris Harris and Lauren Cochran Scoville
17 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Bringing public transit to a transit desert in the desert–MJ Maynard and RTC of Southern Nevada
10 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 excer...
The three big transit trends, making kindness cool, and more APTA EXPO 2021 events
03 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 r...
Multi-modal solutions, advanced ticketing, and loyalty programs: Innovation from Africa and the Middle East
27 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 discussi...
How Autonomous Vehicles Are Fitting into the Bigger Public Transit Landscape
20 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 autonomou...
Nashville’s WeGo Public Transit Is Coming Back Strong with New Innovations
13 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
How transit agencies in New Mexico came together and weathered the pandemic storm
06 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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,...
Four Inspiring Women Leading the Way in Australia
29 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 t...
Going truly zero-emissions in Champaign-Urbana, Karl Gnadt on deploying hydrogen fuel cell buses
22 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Julien Dehornoy of Yarra Trams on the Challenge of Updating an Iconic Tram System
15 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Julien Dehornoy, CEO of Yarra Trams, is responsible for the iconic Melbourne streetcar tram system. This is storied tram system has run continuously s...
David Bruffy and Mountain Line Transit Giving People What They’re Asking For: More Transit
08 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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...
Josh Baker on Relaunching DASH and Untangling the Spaghetti
01 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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...
What’s data got to do with it? To do transit right, everything.
25 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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. Combini...
Special Panel Discussion: What the U.S. Infrastructure Bill Means for Transit Agencies
18 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 T...
John Seber answers the why question
11 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Transit Unplugged News and Views we have two Newsmaker interviews.First Paul chats with John Seber Executive Director of the Central Indi...
Carrie Butler Executive Director of TARC – Optimism and excitement about the future of transit
04 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week Paul comes to you from the Bluegrass State and historic Louisville, Kentucky. Paul visited Carrie Butler, Executive Director of the Transit ...
Using AI to predict when your bus will arrive, meeting tips from Paul Comfort, and people are coming back to transit
28 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Transit Unplugged News and View we have the first Transit Tech segment. These will be monthly segments where we interview on new innovati...
Joubert Flores on creating an integrated and supported public transportation system in Brazil
21 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week we wrap up our mini-tour of Latin America with Paul's conversation with Joubert Flores, Chairman of ANTPTRILHOS in Brazil.Joubert has been a...
Capitalizing on transit’s opportunity with Andrew Bata of UITP
14 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week on the first episode of Transit Unplugged News and Views (what we use to call Comfort's Corner) Paul chats with Andrew Bata of UITP, North A...
Dimas Barreira Putting Technology and Innovation in the Driver’s Seat in Fortaleza, Brazil
07 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The bustling city of Fortaleza could be a model for how operators, transit agencies, and cities can work together to deliver sustainable, technology-e...
Mark Wild of Crossrail UK getting a massive rail project back on track
30 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What do you do when you're given the reins of one of the biggest rail projects in history that's three years late and well over budget? How do you tak...
Comfort’s Corner: Is It Time to Call It Regional Rail?
23 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Paul's on vacation this week so our producer Tris Hussey is in the host's chair for this episode.News in this episode:Proterra goes public on the NASD...
Making Taxis Part of the Transport Solution in Saudi Arabia with Naif Bin Hwail
16 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week Paul chats with Naif Bin Hwail of Saudi Arabia's Transport General Authority (TGA) on how his agency built a structure to serve millions of ...
Comfort’s Corner: Using data to improve operations and meet the changing needs of riders
09 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Comfort's Corner we have two newsmaker interviews for you. First, we talk with Candace Moore of the Ann Arbor Area Transportation Au...
Jeremy Yap, Land Transport Authority, Singapore
02 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"We want to promote caring commuting culture here, a gracious one, ... working together with everyday commuters to try and improve each other's commut...
Comfort’s Corner: NATA, UITP, and the new study on contracting in public transit
26 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Show notes:Welcome to Comfort's Corner for May 26th, 2021.This week on Comfort's Corner we have a special newsmaker segment with board members of the ...
Esmaeel Hasan Al Blooshi, RAK Transport Authority
19 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week Paul chats with Esmaeel Hasan Al Blooshi of the RAK Transport Authority in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. Ras Al Khaimah is the north...
Comfort’s Corner: Julie Timm of GRTC Are fares truly fair?
12 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week is a special Comfort's Corner with a focus on access and equality in the transit system.After this week's transit news, we hear from Julie T...
Leslie Richards – SEPTA
05 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"...it was really that project that showed me how much transportation can add to the economic development of a region, can hurt, or help, neighborhood...
Virtual ThinkTransit Day Three Keynote: Future of Transit Panel
03 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the third of our special Transit Unplugged episodes from Virtual ThinkTransit, we have the final keynote from Day Three. Our final keynote of the c...
Virtual ThinkTransit Day Two Keynote: Lauren Skiver
03 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This is the second of three special Transit Unplugged episodes from Virtual ThinkTransit. Our Day Two keynote was by Lauren Skiver, CEO of SunLine Tra...
Virtual ThinkTransit Day One Keynote: Robbie Makinen
03 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the first of three special Transit Unplugged episodes, we bring you the keynote from Day One of Virtual ThinkTransit (VTT). Robbie Makinen's (...
Comfort’s Corner: Luke Antoniou – Intelligent Transport
28 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“This industry is absolutely crucial for people to live their lives in the way that they are used to doing.”On this episode of Comfort's Corner, p...
Clinton Forbes – Palm Tran
21 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“I have always said that crisis breeds innovation.” Joining the Transit Unplugged podcast for this episode is Clinton Forbes, ...
Comfort’s Corner: Valerie Neilson – Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency
14 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“We're looking at the big picture. Where are we going? What's happening? How do we make this all make sense together?” On this epis...
Nat Ford – Jacksonville Transportation Authority
07 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“I think we are best prepared and situated to be holistic transportation service providers, and we should not limit ourselves and stay in one lane.”...
Comfort’s Corner: Brian Litchfield – Town of Chapel Hill
31 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“We're fortunate enough to work in a community that is supportive of our efforts.” On this episode of Comfort's Corner, p...
Tilly Chang – San Francisco County Transportation Authority
24 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“These people who take care of us every day, we need to take care of them, and make sure that we're ensuring that our services are for everyone...
Comfort’s Corner: Christian Kent, Principal, Christian T. Kent Transit Management Consulting LLC
17 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“When we're challenged in transit, that's often sometimes where the greatest innovation comes.” On this episode of Comfort's Corner, part of ...
David Kim – Secretary of Transportation for the State of California
10 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“We need transit to not only survive the pandemic, but to thrive.” Joining the Transit Unplugged podcast for this episode is David...
Assistant Transit Bureau Chief, Arlington Department of Environmental Services, Division of Transportation
03 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“We have two projects that were always on our books and our capital improvement program, however with the Amazon decis...
Anne Graham – National Transport Authority
24 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“In times of crisis, you tend to come up with more creative solutions when you want to deliver them quite quickly.” Joining the Transit ...
Comfort’s Corner: Scott Bogren – Community Transportation Association of America
17 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“We’re trying to remind Congress that the pandemic’s everywhere. And transit is a national program. It's not a program in 15 largest cities...
Sir Peter Hendy CBE – Chair of Network Rail
10 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“It's not transport for the sake of it … it's got a purpose, and it's worth investing in for that purpose. And as ha...
Comfort’s Corner: Matthew Wood – National Express Transit
03 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“Some of those agencies where we've brought microtransit in, they’ve heard about it, but they weren't really looking into how to implement it. We ...
Alex Wiggins – New Orleans Regional Transit Authority
27 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“Transit was very critical to me being able to live the American dream.” Joining the Transit Unplugged podcast for this episode is Alex Wiggi...
Comfort’s Corner: Tom Gerend – KC Streetcar Authority
20 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
“Our board made a decision very early on that if we could remove the barriers to use, more people would ride. They would frequent mor...
Ahmed Hashem Bahrozyan – Roads & Transport Authority
13 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"We operate the longest driverless Metro system in the whole world currently. Unlike what you normally see around Europe, the far East, etc., our...
Comfort’s Corner: Joshua Schank – LA Metro
06 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"We came together to form this Public-Private Partnership, where we were able to provide what will eventually be the largest on-demand publicly provid...
Taulby Roach – Bi-State Development
31 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
"Bi-State Development is one of the few agencies set by a charter, by an act of Congress. We have a federal charter that notes the governance of Bi-St...
Comfort’s Corner: Ben Plowden – Transport for London
23 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
"Transport for London is probably one of the most integrated transport authorities in the world, in the sense that we not only planned for but also op...
Ronald Lwakatare – Dar Rapid Transit Agency
15 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
"When we complete the six phases of the transit system in Tanzania, we expect to have more than 3,000 BRT buses in the city, and they will replace wha...
Comfort’s Corner: John Rossant – CoMotion
09 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
"In many ways, Los Angeles is going to become one of the key global hubs of new mobility. It is the largest urban car market globally, and in terms of...
Abimbola Akinajo – Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority
01 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
“We are constantly looking at our systems and working to ensure that when we do roll out, we do not have to roll back.” Joining the Transit U...
Comfort’s Corner: Alejandra Cruz Ross – United Nations International Labor Office
25 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
“When looking through an industrial lens, how the future of transit might look will highly depend on its workforce. It will depend on the future of ...
Sue Dreier - Pierce Transit
17 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
“[Of our 160-million-dollar operating budget], we are proud that 88% goes to direct service on the road and 12% goes to administration. We try to ke...
Celebrating 3 Years: A Special Best-Of Edition of Transit Unplugged
12 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
“The [interviews I have conducted over the last three years] confirmed that CEOs of public transit agencies have a very tough job. They are half pol...