New TPTA President, Officers and Board of Directors Named at 2009 TPTA Annual Conference and Expo

Mr. William Hudson has been appointed as the new TPTA President for the next two years. Mr. Hudson is the President / General Manager of Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA). He began his transit career as a bus operator in April, 1964. For 45 years, he has worked in nearly every aspect of transit and has quickly advanced at MATA. Prior to being named President / General Manager in 1993, Hudson held numerous positions including Director of Transit Operations, Customer Service & Marketing, Labor Relations and field operations, and former TPTA President.

Paul Ballard, CEO of MTA / RTA was named Vice President; he is also a veteran in the public transportation industry with over 30 years of experience. Appointed Treasurer was Tommy Bradberry, NWTHRA Transportation Director. Jimmy Smith, past TPTA president and Transit Director of the Clarksville Transit Authority was appointed Secretary. The Immediate Past President is Rebecca Harris, Transportation Director at UCHRA. The Board of Directors consists of:

Tom Dugan--CARTA
Tom Fox--MATA
Johnny Gullett--JTA
Eldonna Janutolo--JCT Cindy McGinnis--KAT
Wayne Owens--SETHRA
Sanford Potts--SCTDD
Jeff Simpson--MCHRA
 

All-Time Attendance Record Set at 2009 TPTA Annual Conference and Expo

Over 350 people converged in Nashville for the 2009 Tennessee Public Transportation Association (TPTA) Conference and Expo. The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) hosted the Conference on October 27-29, 2009, at Loews Vanderbilt Hotel. The Conference theme was “Go Green, Go Transit” which featured informative workshop topics about going “Green”, dynamic speakers, prominent elected officials, premier manufacturers, and the latest innovative transit equipment and technology.

Some of the most exciting moments of the conference where having Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, TDOT Commissioner Nicely, and APTA President Bill Millar open the conference up at the Opening Session. We also had a packed and very informative Legislative Roundtable Panel that included Speaker Emeritus Jimmy Naifeh, Senate Transportation Chair Jim Tracy, House Transportation Chair Bill Harmon, House Agriculture Chair Stratton Bone, and Former House Transportation Chair Phillip Pinion.

The Expo was also TPTA’s most successful with approximately 50 sponsors and vendors. Dave Brown from Mobility Transportation Services stated that “from a vendor’s perspective the (2009) TPTA conference is one of the best! I do 8 – 12 State and National conferences a year and I think yours (TPTA Conference & Expo) is the best. We talked to a number of friends and customers, had an opportunity to show what we had to offer and had a fun time doing it. Thanks again for the opportunity and you can be assured that we’ll be back next year.”

The 2010 TPTA Conference and Expo will take place in Knoxville. Details will be forthcoming!!
 

TPTA Requests High Priority Project (HPP) in Federal Transportation Reauthorization Bill

TPTA timely filed paperwork with Tennessee Federal House and Senate members for an $80 million High Priority Project (HPP) over the life of the next Transportation Reauthorization Bill. The money would be used for bus and bus facility replacement and modernization. Without the funding the aging Tennessee public transportation bus fleet would be severely limited to replacing buses.

New equipment helps Tennessee public transportation agencies carry approximately 31 million passengers per year across the state. Each day Tennesseans in every county in the state benefit from public transportation in order to get to and from work, school or to healthcare services. Low-income and elderly residents in particular rely on public transportation as an economic alternative to automobile usage.
 

Upcoming 2010 TPTA Legislative Events

The Annual TPTA DC Advocacy Trip and Breakfast will take place the first week of March. The weeklong event will start on Tuesday, March 2, 2010 in Washington D.C. The event will start with the TN Tuesday Breakfast with Senators Alexander & Corker and will conclude with the TPTA D.C. Breakfast on Thursday, March 4.

The Annual TPTA Tennessee Day on the Hill will be on Tuesday, March 23, 2010 at the Legislative Plaza in Nashville and will conclude that night with a TPTA Legislative Reception. If you have any questions about the upcoming events, please contact TPTA Executive Director, Greg Adkins at gadkins@tntransit.org.