Transit Unplugged

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Matt Tucker North County Transit District Jul 20, 2022

Show notes

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 unique perspective on public transit from work on both coasts with projects large and small. In his 14 years as Executive Director and CEO of North County Transit District, Matt has perspective about the past, current, and future challenges for public transit in his region and beyond.

Next week Paul is chatting with April Rei, CEO of COMTO, one of two great conversations coming from the recent COMTO Conference.

Wiebe Wakker Sustainable Adventurer from Plug Me In Jul 13, 2022

Show notes

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:

Also on the show the latest public transit news, Elea Carey's Messaging Minute, Mike's Minute with Mike Bismeyer, and Paul's look at the future of transit.

Next week on the show we have Matt Tucker, Executive Director and CEO of the North County Transit District talking about his multi-modal system and how they are adapting to changing ridership.

If you have a question, comment, or would like to be a guest on Transit Unplugged email us at info@transitunplugged.com.

Plus...please take a moment to nominate us in the Government and Organizations category in the Podcast Awards. Nominating us not only gets us to the voting round, but also factors into who wins the award!

Charlotte Shaw Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority Jul 06, 2022

Show notes

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 transit.

Listen to Charlotte tell Paul how she got into transit and her vision for creating a transit system that does more than just get people places.

Next week on Transit Unplugged News and Views, Paul is talking with Wiebe Wakker who drove an electric car from the Netherlands to New Zealand to show how efficient and reliable EVs are.

It's podcast award season! Please help Transit Unplugged win a People's Choice podcast award by nominating us in the "Government and Organizations" category. Visit PodcastAwards.com to nominate us to make it to the voting round.

Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter on the website and if you'd like to ask a question or be a guest on Transit Unplugged, email us at info@transitunplugged.com.

Sam Morrissey — Urban Movement Labs Jun 29, 2022

Show notes

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:

Transit industry news
Elea Carey's Messaging Minute on keeping your agency messaging fresh
Mike's Minute with Mike Bismeyer on what it means to be a leader and mentor with insights from Paul
Paul's Future of Transit segment on his new role at Modaxo and his new book coming out later this year

Next week on the show we have Charlotte Shaw, CEO of the Birmingham - Jefferson County Transit Authority as our guest on Transit Unplugged In Depth. Don't forget to sign up for the Transit Unplugged newsletter on the website to always be in the know about what's happening with the show. If you have a question, comment, or you'd like to be a guest on the show, email info@transitunplugged.com.

Sam Snead — Anne Arundel County Department of Transportation Jun 22, 2022

Show notes

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 always a challenge, but Sam's plans to tap into local, regional, and micro transit solutions have created a solid foundation for his county to build on.

Don't forget to subscribe to the Transit Unplugged newsletter to be first to know about new shows and announcements about the podcast and TUTV!

If you have a question, comment, or would like to be a guest on Transit Unplugged, email us at info@transitunplugged.com

Tom Wright — Regional Plan Association Jun 15, 2022

Show notes

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-pandemic era and how cities, states, and the U.S. federal government need to look at and coordinate their efforts. The region is already behind the eight ball to catch up, it will take a lot of work to put things on track.

Also on this week's show:

Transit news of the week including news about frequent guests Mark Wilde and Julie Timm
Elea Carey on communicating planning and change
Mike Bismeyer wants to hear your leadership stories

If you want to stay in touch make sure you sign up for email updates on the website. If you have a question, comment, or would like to be a guest on Transit Unplugged, email us at info@transitunplugged.com

Melinda Metzger — Pace Suburban Bus Jun 08, 2022

Show notes

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 get their Commercial Drivers License (CDL) and be ready to start training at Pace to become full bus operators.

Get a glimpse of what the future of electrification looks like in the Chicago area as Pace gears up to reach zero emissions by 2040. You'll also hear about a brand new Pace bus facility opened by Secretary Buttigieg, and what our next generation of riders is prioritizing in their daily commutes.

Catch us next week to hear Tom Wright, president and CEO of RPA regional planning association. RPA focuses on improving the prosperity, sustainability, and livability of people in the New York Metropolitan Area.

If you have a question, comment, or would like to be a guest on Transit Unplugged, email us at info@transitunplugged.com.

Jen Shepherd — GM Uber Transit Jun 01, 2022

Show notes

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 announced partnership with Trapeze, integrating Trapeze TripBroker with Uber Transit. Listen to the whole episode to hear how it works for riders and agencies. Also in this episode:

Transit news of the week including the new interim CEO at Cap Metro
Elea Carey on crisis communications
Mike Bismeyer on leadership and leading through the pandemic

Next week Melinda Metzger Executive Director of PACE Suburban Bus joins Paul for Transit Unplugged In-Depth.

If you have a question, comment, or would like to be a guest on Transit Unplugged, email us at info@transitunplugged.com.

Wayne Rogers — Northeast Maglev May 25, 2022

Show notes

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 service is wildly successful, bringing this level of train service would mean being able to get from New York City to Washington D.C. in an hour.

Many of the trips people take today by car or plane could be eliminated if the Northeast Corridor gets maglev up and running. Maglev would reduce congestion, pollution, and pressure on the highway system as the region grows. The U.S. has been looking at maglev rail for decades and Northeast Maglev started working on this project ten years ago. The environmental reviews are almost complete and they are looking to get the project up and running soon. In the episode, you'll hear about the project, the technology, and what we've learned from the successful maglev train in Japan.

Next week on Transit Unplugged News and Views, we'll have Jen Shepard, GM of Uber Transit on the show talking about microtransit and paratransit options.

If you have a comment, question, or would like to be a guest on Transit Unplugged, email us at info@transitunplugged.com.

Christiaan Blake, Managing Dir, Dept of Access Services, WMATA May 18, 2022

Show notes

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 array of spreadsheets, Christiaan has gone to great pains to make sure the process is fair and random, This has proven to be very popular--so popular people clamor for more free rides--and lets Christiaan accommodate last-minute trips, staying longer, or leaving earlier than planned.

This is a big job and Christiaan takes his role and place in transit seriously. He sees paratransit as a crucial safety net for people who can't be served with even WMATA's accessible fixed-route and subway system.

Also on the show, we have the latest transit news, Elea Carey talks about sharing employee stories and Mike Bismeyer challenges us to do something good in the cities we visit while traveling for work.

All this on this week's Transit Unplugged News and Views. Sit back and listen in.

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