Magazine serving the bus and rail transit & motorcoach operations since 1904
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Transit Services, Inc. Providing Premier Passenger Rail KƉĞƌĂƟŽŶƐDĂŝŶƚĞŶĂŶĐĞĂŶĚdƌĂŝŶ Dispatch Services from Coast to Coast. Contact Norm Jester 14201 W. Sunrise Blvd Suite 104 Sunrise, FL 33323 (954) 851-0774 www.htsi.com ŽŵŵƵƚĞƌZĂŝů>ŝŐŚƚZĂŝů^ƚƌĞĞƚĐĂƌƐ 50 < m ETRO m AGAZINE SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 metro-magazine.com GARY THOMAS President/Executive Director Dallas Area Rapid Transit As president/executive director of DART since 2001, Tomas has doubled its light rail system twice to become the nation's longest at 85 miles. Thomas has also developed a progressive clean fuels program that included migrating its fleet of around 650 buses to clean-burn- ing CNG for which it partnered with Clean Energy to design and install a network of fill- ing stations. " I t w a s n ' t s o m e t h i n g w e t o o k l i g h t l y ," Thomas explained in a recent blog for METRO. "As a tax- payer-supported agency, it's contingent on us to examine every option we have, and to balance cost-effectiveness with other factors such as service quality and environmen- tal impact." In August, DART opened its Dallas/Fort Worth Interna- tional Airport (DFW) station four months ahead of sched- ule and under budget. With the launch of the new five-mile extension from Belt Line Station to Terminal A at DFW, riders are now able to walk about 300 feet from the station to the terminal, perience in transportation policy. She became staf director for the Subcommittee on Rail- roads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials in 2008, after serving as a professional staf member on the Highways and Transit Subcommittee of the House T&I; Committee. As staf director, Rose drafted, negotiated and helped se- cure passage of MAP-21. She also worked on the passage of Amtrak authorization and rail safety bills in 2008, and helped draft the transit provisions in SAFETEA-LU. As president/CEO of OLI, Rose leads eforts by the non- proft education group to end collisions, deaths and injuries at highway-rail grade crossings and on rail property through a nationwide network of volunteers who work to educate people about rail safety. In 2013, Rose and APTA President/CEO Michael Melani- phy signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to re- new and intensify collaboration on transportation safety and jointly develop new educational materials. Te MOU commits both organizations to ensure their pol- icies and positions on rail and transit safety are consistent ; work as partners to develop and distribute safety education and awareness materials to improve rail passenger trans- portation safety, both for passengers and for members of the general public; and to jointly participate on technical com- mittees afecting rail and transit safety. MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE