Transit Unplugged

“What makes a fantastic difference for Yarra Trams, is its brand and its incredible value in every Melburnian’s heart. And I realized that every time I’m meeting new people.” 

Transit Unplugged continues its adventure in Australia with Nicolas Gindt, CEO of Keolis Downer Victoria and operator of Yarra Trams. Yarra Trams is the largest tram network in the world. It has a diverse fleet of ~480 trams with 250 kilometers of track (times two as Nicolas likes to say), with 2300 employees.  

On this episode, Nicolas discusses the challenges of operating a diverse trams system – with some trams being weeks old compared to some that have run for 60 years. Sometimes it’s because they must create parts in-house or that the manufacturer no longer exists, and it’s the challenge of integrating the different technologies between all the different trams.  

Nicolas highlights how about 75% of the network shares its service with the road and other vehicles. Finally, he elaborates on the challenges of building additional infrastructure for a tram network and trying to make the system more accessible for people with disabilities.  

If you want to know more about Yarra Trams, you can check out their website.  

Remember to check out transitunplugged.com to learn from top transit professionals and stay up to date to catch all the latest episodes.  

“For the very first time, handheld technology has allowed us to say to people, ‘Your value of time has suddenly shifted.’”

Transit Unplugged has left North America and traveled to Australia. Our first guest on this seven-part series in the land Down Under, Jeroen Weimar, CEO of Public Transport Victoria (PTV), was one of the people that helped set up Transport for London and jumped around the industry a bit before landing at PTV.

With Melbourne being one of the fastest growing developed cities in the industrialized world, the state of Victoria is investing heavily in transportation. The regional government is spending $38B on new rail, new road tunnels, upgrades, and general transport infrastructure spending, which gives PTV an excellent opportunity to advance public transport in the region.

Public Transport Victoria has many different modes – bus, metro, commuter rail, etc. – but the most notable mode is the largest tram system in the world. Between all these modes, PTV has ~2 million passengers every day. About 20 or so years ago, they started outsourcing operations of their entire service, but the passengers only see a single entity – PTV. Weimar notes the difference between outsourcing and privatizing since PTV owns the “infrastructure, track, power, everything.”

On this episode, Weimar discusses how contracting out their service is the way that PTV provides safe, efficient, and reliable service. He also goes into the challenge of running some legacy systems while PTV invests in new technology. Finally, he shares the plan for PTV’s new mobile payment platform and the importance of transport to communities.

If you want to know more about PTV, you can check out their website.

Remember to check out transitunplugged.com to learn from top transit professionals and stay up to date to catch all the latest episodes.

“I love what we do as an industry. What we do really matters.”

Today's guest originally hails from the neighbor to the North in the province of Nova Scotia. But after making his way to the USA, he spent some time at MBTA before settling in at Capital Metro (CapMetro) in Austin, Texas. Randy Clarke, President and CEO of CapMetro, joins Transit Unplugged to discuss CapMetro’s Project Connect plan which is set to transform the future of transit for Central Texas. He also goes into their Cap Remap program which redefined the routes in Austin by focusing on a grid style network, reflecting the new development of the city, and frequency - which has helped increase ridership in Austin. 

If you want to know more about CapMetro, you can check out their website.  

Remember to check out transitunplugged.com to learn from top transit professionals and stay up to date to catch all the latest episodes.  

“If real-estate is location, location, location, transit is frequency, frequency, frequency.”

Jeffrey Arndt started his career as a traffic engineer and had a long stint at Houston Metro before making his way to VIA Metropolitan Transit in San Antonio. Now President and CEO of VIA, Arndt highlights the importance of frequency to transit service. Additionally, he discusses VIA’s new bus shelters, plans for a new advance rapid transit service, and mobility on demand. Plus, you’ll learn about some of the awards VIA has won over the past year.

If you want to know more about VIA, you can check out their website.

Remember to check out transitunplugged.com to learn from top transit professionals and stay up to date to catch all the latest episodes.

“I wanted to spend my time doing something to make where I was better.” – Katharine Kelleman 

“Don’t run away from the people that need you every day.” – Robbie Makinen 

“There is no sense in running what people aren’t riding.” – Lauren Skiver 

It’s exciting to introduce the first ever Transit Unplugged Live. Held as one of the keynotes during the 2019 ThinkTransit Conference, five of transit’s top CEOs were up on stage talking about the scope of their agency, career path getting to their current position, the big projects they are focused on, and the future of transit technology.  

Here were our amazing guests that were with us in sunny Tampa, Florida: 

Phil Washington – CEO, LA Metro 

Lauren Skiver – CEO, SunLine Transit 

Robbie Makinen – CEO, KCATA 

Katharine Kelleman – CEO, Port Authority of Allegheny County 

John Sisson – CEO, Delaware Transit Corporation 

Remember to check out transitunplugged.com to learn from top transit professionals and stay up to date to catch all the latest episodes.