Past Events

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Mineta Transportation Institute hosted a series of virtual fireside chats with a diverse panel of women transportation leaders at the apex of success in academia, public and private industries, and the nonprofit sector. During the webinar, participants explored compelling personal narratives and leadership journeys and gained valuable insights into how these leaders balance assertiveness with emotional intelligence, overcoming stereotypes and dispelling misconceptions about perceived weakness. Featured guests also shared invaluable insights as we dove into the profound impact of reshaping perspectives and championing women in the transportation industry and beyond.

Featured Guest: Jannet Walker-Ford, Senior Vice President & Principal Director - National Transit & Rail Business Line Leader, WSP

Moderator: Karen Philbrick, PhD, Executive Director, Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI)

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PDH Credit.

*0.5 PDH credit available

About Jannet Walker-Ford

Jannet Walker-Ford is a nationally recognized transportation industry executive with WSP USA, a leading engineering and professional services consultancy. A tireless advocate for equity in transportation and the power of public transit to transform communities, Walker-Ford has more than two decades of diverse expertise including management consulting, technology, mobility, and transportation systems. With a focus on equity, sustainability and community building she has served in executive leadership and strategic advisor roles on ground-breaking programs and projects for large transit and transportation agencies across the U.S. She regularly draws on her two decades of experience for national consultancy firms and as the Deputy General Manager/Deputy CEO and CIO at the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority. 

In her role with WSP, she serves as the senior vice president & national transit and rail business leader, responsible for leading and growing the firm’s business in national transit and rail markets including the national practices for freight delivery, passenger rail, systems, technical project delivery, bus rapid transit and zero emissions. At every opportunity, Jannet leads with gratitude – continually recognizing her team, clients and industry partners for their contributions and accomplishments. 

Recognized by Railway Age as a 2023 Woman-in-Rail, she serves on multiple national boards including the current Chair of WTS International and the APTA Executive Committee and has received numerous awards recognizing her success and advocacy including the 2022 American Public Transportation Association’s Business Member of the Year; 2021 WTS Northeast Florida Woman of the Year, 2019 Women of Color STEM Technology All-Star Award; and a 2019 Conference of Minority Transportation Officials’ Women Who Move the Nation honoree.

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Mineta Transportation Institute hosted a series of virtual fireside chats with a diverse panel of women transportation leaders at the apex of success in academia, public and private industries, and the nonprofit sector. During the webinar, participants explored compelling personal narratives and leadership journeys and gained valuable insights into how these leaders balance assertiveness with emotional intelligence, overcoming stereotypes and dispelling misconceptions about perceived weakness. Featured guests also shared invaluable insights as we dove into the profound impact of reshaping perspectives and championing women in the transportation industry and beyond.

Featured Guest: Veronica Vanterpool, Acting Administrator, Federal Transit Administration (FTA)

Moderator: Karen Philbrick, PhD, Executive Director, Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI)

*0.5 PDH credit available

View the Recording.

PDH Credit.

About Veronica Vanterpool

Veronica Vanterpool is FTA’s Acting Administrator, assuming that role on February 24, 2024. Before that, she served as Deputy Administrator for 2 ½ years. She first joined FTA as Senior Advisor in August 2021. Ms. Vanterpool helps advance the goals of the Biden-Harris Administration related to equity, climate, innovation, safety and workforce development.

Ms. Vanterpool helps oversee policy priorities and objectives along with day-to-day operations of the 700-person agency. She created FTA’s first Data Office, a new business line in the agency dedicated to data analysis, governance and communication. She also represents FTA on the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation and serves as a member of the White House Inter Policy Council on Puerto Rico.

Ms. Vanterpool came to FTA from Delaware Transit Corporation, where she served as the agency’s first Chief Innovation Officer. Her previous roles include being the Deputy Director of the national Vision Zero Network, executive director of the New York City based Tri-State Transportation Campaign and board member of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Having served on a number of boards, commissions, task forces and working groups, Ms. Vanterpool has 17 years of experience in advocacy, policy, media communications, public outreach, coalition building and issue campaigns. She is co-founder and former president of the Delaware Chapter of WTS; a member of Latinos in Transit, and a 2023 Awardee of COMTO’s Women Who Moves the Nation. She was also selected to join the first cohort of the Biden Administration’s Presidential Leadership Workshop.

She is a native New Yorker born and raised in The Bronx.

Founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers in 1951, Engineers Week is dedicated to ensuring a diverse and well-educated future engineering workforce by increasing understanding of and interest in engineering and technology careers. Engineers Week aims to inspire future generations of engineers and provide opportunities for K-12 students to learn about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through professional panels, discussions, and hands-on engineering activities. As a part of Engineers Week celebration, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) San Jose - Young Members Forum hosted 150 local high school girls to participate in Girl Day at San José Woman's Club and San José State University. 

*This event was presented by the Mineta Transportation Institute.

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*This event was co-sponsored by High Speed Rail Alliance.

The City of San Jose and high-speed rail thought leaders discussed best practices and lessons learned from developing and running high-speed rail stations. They also explored the intricacies of planning, designing, and developing mixed-use station areas and multimodal passenger facilities that enable a safe, comfortable, and seamless travel experience.

This webinar was created for planners, policymakers, transit managers, and others passionate about shaping the future of HSR and station areas. 

Agenda Highlights:

• Station Area Development

• First-/Last-Mile Connections

• Transit-Oriented Development Best Practices

• Discussions & Q&A

Speakers:

• Eric Eidlin, Station Planning Manager, City of San Jose

• Ramses Madou, Division Manager of Planning, Policy, and Sustainability for the Department of Transportation, City of San Jose

Moderator: Karen Philbrick, PhD, Executive Director, Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI)

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The Podcar City Conference for the Future of Automated Shared Mobility 2023 was held at City Hall, Council Chambers, and the Rotunda at the City of San José. The main goal of the Podcar City Conference is to encourage considerable improvement of mass mobility in all possible ways – conserve earth and human resources, improve equity and have an open dialog of planning for the future. For more information on the Program and speakers, head to the Conference's event website.  

The Podcar City Conferences is an initiative by 4Dialog AB, Sweden, in collaboration with the International Institute of Sustainable Transportation (INIST), USA.

*MTI was a proud-co-sponsor of this event.

U.S. transit has long grappled with escalating costs and delays: why do we struggle to build transit systems at a pace or a cost comparable to other countries? How can we mend a fractured transit system? In this webinar, transportation experts discussed the core issue: Should the focus be on individual projects or on achieving broader outcomes? Attendees learned what approach will bring positive, actionable change to our transportation systems.

Speakers:

• Alison Premo Black, PhD, Senior Vice President & Chief Economist, American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA)

• Eric Goldwyn, PhD, Program Director of Transportation and Land Use & Clinical Assistant Professor, NYU Marron Institute

• Sadie Graham, Link21 Program Director, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)

• Joshua Schank, PhD, MTI Research Associate & Managing Principal, InfraStrategies
  

   

Moderator: Hilary Nixon, PhD, Deputy Executive Director, Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI)

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As the transit industry is poised to take advantage of the largest transit and rail investment in our lifetimes, the symposium provides a platform where transit experts share insights on how evidence-based research is being or can be, used to make the most of these opportunities in a changing environment. This year’s symposium focused on the following topics:

• Practical applications of transit data
• Transit fare policy
• Transit equity
• Transit marketing and outreach strategies
• Transit-centered multimodal integration (e.g., MaaS)
• Transit apps and digital payments
• Microtransit and automated shuttles
• Bus fleet electrification
• Post-COVID ridership recovery strategies
• Opportunities and challenges to transit research implementation

The Symposium was convened by a partnership between APTA, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), University of Florida Transportation Institute, the T-SCORE University Transportation Center, and the Mineta Transportation Institute. 

This event is an annual and internationally recognized observance on October 11th. Like its adult version, International Women's Day (March 8), International Day of the Girl acknowledges the importance, power, and potential of adolescent girls. At the same time, this day is designated to eliminate gender-based challenges that little girls face around the world. By empowering girls through education, skills training, and mentorship, we can dismantle barriers and create a world where every girl can flourish. Boys & Girls Clubs of Silicon Valley celebrated the entire week of October 10th-15th and observed the 11th with an event.

"When I was younger, I wanted to be a scientist - but I had stopped that dream because I just hadn't seen a lot of women scientists. 

But today, I met a lot of amazing women with amazing careers. I met engineers, I met lawyers - I met scientists! I really needed this."

To learn more about the movement, visit the Boys & Girls Clubs of Silicon Valley's website. 

*MTI was a proud co-sponsor of this event.

When disaster strikes and an emergency notification is issued, people are often unsure how to act. They may spend time “milling,” checking in with friends and neighbors, scrolling through sources and social media—trying to decide whether the alert applies to them. Research has shown this can be life threatening. Looking at how community members responded to alerts during the SCU and CZU complex wildland fires in 2020, experts Dr. Frances L. Edwards and Dan Goodrich examine disaster public communications best practices. How can public agencies collaborate with social media organizations to get the right messaging out? How do we ensure messaging engenders immediate, life-saving action? The researchers have also proposed an app that could assist in eliminating time spent milling by speeding up social media investigation by sorting messages via GIS coordinates, time, and more to ensure community members are reading the messages most relevant to them. This webinar, presented during National Preparedness Month, helped viewers gain valuable insights and explore innovative solutions in disaster communication.

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About the Panelist

Frances L. Edwards, MUP, PhD, CEM, is professor emeritus of political science at San José State University, following 17 years as the Director of the Master of Public Administration program. She is the Deputy Director of the National Transportation Security Center at the Mineta Transportation Institute. A Certified Emergency Manager with over 20 years’ professional experience in California, she has served as acting assistant fire chief for the San José Fire Department, as Budget Analyst for the Irvine, California Police Department, and as Assistant to the City Manager in Florham Park, New Jersey. 

Daniel C. Goodrich, MPA, CEM, MEP is a Senior Transportation Security Scientist with the Mineta Transportation Institute at SJSU, and the instructor for “Security Issues for Transportation Professionals” in the Master of Science in Transportation Management program. He is a Certified Emergency Manager, a Master Exercise Practitioner, a Professional Continuity Practitioner and a Certified Security Specialist. He provides emergency management planning and training support to Caltrans and Santa Clara Valley Transit Authority.