DART Welcomes Deanna Leggett as EVP of Growth and Regional Development

TRANSPORTATION DART Welcomes Deanna Leggett as EVP of Growth and Regional Development

By Subcontractors USA News Provider

Deanna Leggett has been selected as the new executive vice president of growth and regional development at Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). A nationally recognized transit leader, Leggett brings over 20 years of experience in the planning, development, and operation of public transportation projects across the country. "We are very excited to welcome Dee to the DART family," said Nadine S. Lee, DART president & CEO. "She is a proven transportation leader who brings a unique combination of strategic thought leadership and an extensive record of operations performance, project delivery, and innovation that will expand the leadership capacity at DART. I'm looking forward to Dee's contributions to our efforts to enhance the public transportation experience for all our riders."

In her role, Leggett will oversee DART's Capital Planning, Real Estate, Environmental Compliance, Transit Oriented Development, Capital Program Support, Service Planning, Commuter Rail, and Design and Construction departments, as well as an extensive array of design consultants and construction contractors.

Photo Caption: Deanna Leggett has been selected as the new executive vice president of growth and regional development at Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART).

"DART is a world class organization focused on providing transformative mobility solutions to the region," said Leggett. "I am honored to join their leadership team to help plan and deliver programs, projects and services that meet the future needs of our transit riders and our communities."

Leggett comes to the agency from HatchLTK where she served as the vice president of the south-central region and director of zero-emissions technology. In that role she oversaw projects and client engagement for all transit and rail clients in the South-Central region of the United States. She also served as the subject matter expert and project manager for transit contracting, transit planning, transit operations and maintenance, grant funding and federal regulatory requirements. "DART has always been a driver of growth and innovation across the North Texas region," said Michele Wong-Krause, chair of the DART Board of Directors. "The knowledge, experience and drive that Dee brings to her role will allow the agency to build on our mission to provide outstanding and customer-driven service to our Service Area city residents."

Before joining HatchLTK, Leggett also served as chief operations officer at Bowman Engineering and Consulting, as well as the southwest region vice president of transit contracting and region vice president of transit management at First Transit.

A graduate of Leadership APTA, as well as one of Mass Transit's Top 40 Under 40, Leggett holds a Bachelor of Science in History/Political Science from Union University in Jackson, TN, and a Masters of Public Administration from the University of Texas at Arlington.

For more information, please visit dart.org.

Source(s): Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)

TRANSPORTATION USDOT Announces $11 Million in Grant Awards to Help Communities Plan for Transit-Oriented Development

By Subcontractors USA News Provider

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Transit Administration (FTA) recently announced the award of approximately $11 million to 20 projects in 12 states to support comprehensive planning efforts to improve access to public transportation. Funding through FTA's Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Planning grants will help organizations plan for transportation projects that connect communities and improve access to transit and affordable housing.

"Transit-oriented development offers easier, more affordable access to jobs, health care, school, shopping, and other daily needs," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "We're pleased to award this funding to help more communities develop around transit in a way that reduces pollution, increases economic opportunity, and contributes to affordable housing."

FTA's Pilot Program for TOD Planning supports local planning and strategies to increase transit access and encourage ridership through mixed-use and mixedincome development near public transportation projects. This year’s selected projects support President Biden’s call to combat climate change, advance environmental justice, and promote equitable delivery of benefits to underserved communities. "Equitable transit-oriented development helps those at the local level respond to climate change and affordable housing challenges, particularly in underserved communities," said FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez. "Our goal is to create access for all Americans who ride transit by encouraging mixed-use, mixed income development around new transit projects. I hope that communities will join with FTA to accelerate transit-oriented development by addressing zoning and planning changes that will increase mixed income and affordable housing around transit hubs and stations."

Some of the selected projects Some of the selected include: projects include:

Governments-Dallas Area Rapid Transit will receive $800,000 to plan for TOD at nine DART Silver Line regional rail stations that connect major centers around Dallas. • Fort Worth Transportation will receive $405,000 to plan for TOD around five stations on the TEXRail line to identify opportunities for development in the city of Fort Worth. • The City of Phoenix Public Transit Department in Arizona will receive $920,000 to plan for TOD at 11 stations proposed along a five-mile streetcar line to connect activity centers in the city of Mesa. • The Chicago Transit Authority in Illinois will receive $800,000 to plan for TOD at four proposed stations along 5.6-miles of its Red Line 'L' train subway line. • The Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments in South Carolina will receive $860,000 to plan for TOD on its proposed 21.5-mile Lowcountry Rapid Transit bus rapid transit corridor.

A list of all selected projects and information on previously funded projects can be found at transit. dot.gov. Planning projects were selected for funding based on criteria described in the Notice of Funding Opportunity.

The President's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides a $18.9 million, or 38%, increase in funding for this program over five years, as compared to the previous level. This will expand FTA's ability to support transit-oriented development nationwide.

The TOD Pilot Program was originally created under the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) authorization and amended by the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, the last transportation authorization law before the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

For more information, please visit transit.dot.gov.

Source(s): Federal Transit Administration