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44 < m ETRO m AGAZINE SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 metro-magazine.com the male demographic in WTS membership has also signifi- cantly increased. KEITH PARKER GM/CEO Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority Te current GM/CEO of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Tran- sit Authority (MARTA), Parker's career has included public and private-sector experiences in diverse communities around the country, including stints at San Antonio VIA Metropolitan Transit and N.C.'s Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). Under Parker's leadership, VIA and CATS en- joyed some of the highest ridership increases in the country, while maintaining some of the low- est costs. Te transit agencies also won numer- ous local, state and national awards in areas such as safety, maintenance, environmental innovations and over- all excellence. Upon taking over at MARTA in Dec. 2012, Parker began fo- cusing on changing the perception of the agency, which had been viewed as not protecting taxpayer dollars well. "We have instituted a number of major reforms that are mak- ing the agency more efcient every day, while our costs are go- ing down pretty signifcantly," Parker told METRO in February. "MARTA's only balanced its budget, where revenues actually exceeded expenses, twice in the last 15 years, and we were able to do that very quickly." Parker also created the "Ride with Respect" program — an effort to let passengers and potential passengers know that when they ride MARTA's service, they should expect to be able to ride in a safe, unencumbered manner, while also holding people accountable who are disruptive or uncivil. Parker's focus on fnancial accountability has translated into allowing MARTA to begin using its cost savings to begin invest- ing back into its customers. Te agency is currently working on improving its bus routes and on-time performance, while also signifcantly improving frequency on its train system. PETER ROGOFF Under Secretary, Policy U.S. Department of Transportation Confrmed as Federal Transit Administrator in May 2009, Rog- of led the agency through a period of historic change and pro- cess improvements to meet the American public's growing need for public transportation services. Ro g o f f wa s i n st r u m e nt a l i n h e l p i ng t h e Obama Administration develop and transmit new safety legislation to Congress, which is now part of MAP-21, granting FTA new authority for the frst time in over 40 years to establish and enforce minimum transit safety standards on all federally funded rail transit systems. He also led a successful effort to streamline cleanliness, communications, and convenience, while deliver- ing quality transit services to customers and the region. As a regional business, SEPTA has taken a leadership role adopting a comprehensive sustainability program focusing on initiatives ranging from building an eco-feet, developing al- ternative energy generation and storage, to station and facil- ity recycling. In recognition of its eforts, SEPTA received both APTA's Outstanding Public Transportation System Award and APTA Gold Sustainability Recognition in 2012. Tanks in large part to Casey's key role as a tireless advocate for fnding a dedicated, long-term funding source to address SEPTA's critical infrastructure improvements, Act 89, which provides new resources for transportation in Pennsylvania, went into efect in January 2014. Casey serves on the board of directors and several commit- tees of APTA and the Transportation Learning Center; the Board of Fellows of the Temple University Center on Regional Politics; the Board of the March of Dimes Building and Con- struction Committee; the Advisory Council for the Consor- tium for Technologies for Safe and Efcient Transportation; and is a founding member of the Leadership Consortium for the Metropolitan Rail Discussion Group. He has also been recognized with the 2011 Service to Hu- manity Award presented by the March of Dimes, honored by Women in Transportation Philadelphia (WTS) with the 2011 Philadelphia Award, and received the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials 2011 Executive of the Year Award. MARCIA FERRANTO Executive Director Women's Transportation Seminar When joining the W TS as the executive director, Ferranto brought more than two decades of experience to the position in advocating educational and career develop- ment for women. With the future of the transportation industry in crisis due to the workforce gap, WTS is work- ing on flling the pipeline through the attraction of young women; building awareness around transportation as a viable career choice. Ferran- to's initiatives to fll the pipeline include the cre- ation of Transportation YOU in coordination with U.S. DOT and the ratifcation of WTS student chapters across the U.S. Recognizing that the dearth of women in the highest levels of leadership in transportation is not conducive to leader-to- leader engagement, Ferranto also created the WTS Executive Women's Roundtable. Te annual 1 1/2-day event brings to- gether the top 40 women in the industry to learn from one an- other. Trough their engagement, WTS has fostered a stronger group of leaders to forge the path for the women who will join them at those top levels. Realizing men play a vital role in the retention and advance- ment of women in the industry, through Ferranto's leadership MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE