Rod Diridon, Executive Director Of The Mineta Transportation Institute, Now President Of San Jose Rotary

After 38 years of service to the San Jose Rotary, Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI) Executive Director Rod Diridon has added another title to his extraordinary resume, President of the San Jose Rotary.

At his first Rotary meeting as Board President, Mr. Diridon emphasized community service and membership development. Mr. Diridon’s close friend and former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta served as keynote speaker after being introduced by Mr. Diridon.

Known as the “father of modern transit service” in Silicon Valley, Mr. Diridon began his career of serving the public in 1971as the youngest person ever elected to the Saratoga City Council. Since then, Mr. Diridon’s has chaired over 100 international, national, state and local programs related to transit and the environment including the American Public Transit Association (APTA) and the North American Vice Chair of the International Transit Association in Brussels.

ABOUT THE MINETA TRANSPORTATION INSTITUTE:

MTI was established by Congress in 1991 as part of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) and was reauthorized in 1998. The institute is funded by Congress through the US DOT’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration, by the California Legislature through the Department of Transportation (Caltrans), and by other public and private grants and donations. The US DOT selected MTI as a national “Center of Excellence” following a 2002 competition.

The Institute has a Board of Trustees whose internationally-respected members represent all major surface transportation modes. MTI’s focus on policy and management resulted from a board assessment of the industry’s unmet needs and led directly to choosing the San José State University College of Business as the Institute’s home. MTI conducts research, education, and information and technology transfer focusing on transportation policy and management topics and issues.