APTA awards UTA top honors at 2018 rail conference
Written by Kyra Senese, Managing Editor
American Public Transportation Association (APTA) has awarded the Utah Transit Authority (UTA) of Salt Lake City, Utah, its Rail Transit Team Achievement Award at the 26th annual APTA International Rail Rodeo.
The event was part of the 2018 APTA Rail Conference in Denver, Colo.
APTA says the award is given to the system with the highest combined score for its rail operator and maintainer teams’ work.
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) team came in second, and the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District team from Oakland, Calif., came in third.
“Our maintainers and operators strive to provide our rail riders with the safest and most convenient transportation,” said Paul P. Skoutelas, APTA’s president and CEO. “I am so appreciative of the work all our competitors put into being the best public transportation providers they can be. The appreciation they have received this weekend is the result of years of hard work and training.”
The Operators Competition evaluates skills, such as train operation, knowledge of safety regulations, train equipment and track right-of-way procedures, APTA said.
Kuljinder Bath and Hossein Ramirez of Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (San Jose, Calif.), won first place in the Operators Competition while Narciso Garcia and Robert Dennis of Regional Transportation District (Denver, Colo.) placed second. The UTA team featuring of Logan Packer and Curtis Turley took third place.
In the Maintainers Competition, participants are considered based on their ability to resolve maintenance problems. The LACMTA team, which included Marcos Martinez, Parker Rounds and Jose Padilla, won in this category.
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) team, comprised of Gary Geyer, Cameron Massaro and Dan Compton placed second, and the UTA maintainer team including Jody Fairbourn, Ryan Gardner and Kris Peterson won third place.
“The APTA International Rail Rodeo Competition encourages excellence and professionalism in rail transit operations,” the association said.
This year’s competition included 18 teams of operators and 15 mechanic teams from the U.S. and Japan.
