People in the News - November 2012

Nov. 8, 2012

Howard Wood has been named area manager for the Columbus, Ohio, office of Parsons Brinckerhoff. Formerly a principal consultant in the strategic consulting group of PB, Wood will now manage the Columbus office, which specializes in preliminary project development, transportation and environmental planning, multimodal analysis, travel demand modeling, traffic engineering and highway and bridge design. PB has appointed John Munro, a tunnel services specialist and executive from its Australia office, as director of the firm's Mechanical & Electrical Technical Excellence Center (TEC). Norman Rhodes has been named Tunnel Services technical director in the Mechanical & Electrical Technical Excellence Center at PB. Rhodes comes to Parsons Brinckerhoff from Hatch Mott MacDonald, where he was responsible for the fire life safety and security practice for North America and Canada. 

Hatch Mott MacDonald announces that Peter Cipolla, senior vice president and business development director for Rail and Transit, has been inducted into the American Public Transportation Association's (APTA) Hall of Fame. 

Motor Coach Industries announces that Louis Quaglia has rejoined MCI Public Sector as business development manager for the Northeastern U.S. region. Quaglia held a similar position at MCI from 2005 until 2008, when he moved to Nova Bus as regional sales manager for the Northeast.

TKH Security Solutions USA announces the appointment of Jacek Deja as its new Northeast U.S. sales manager. Deja is responsible for establishing new relationships with consultants, integrators and end-users in the Northeast region. 

Christian Nykiel will head the Business Division Road at Voith Turbo. Nykiel will be responsible for drive and braking systems for buses, coaches, trucks and agricultural machinery. Nykiel started his professional career at ABB.

Vicon Industries Inc. announces the appointment of Dave Charles as director of sales, Eastern Region.  Most recently, Charles served as vice president, business development for Lenel Systems International within the UTC Climate, Controls and Security division.

Dean L. Groves, P.E., and Peter Piattoni have joined URS Corp.'s New England operations as part of its Infrastructure & Environment Division. Groves has extensive experience in public infrastructure planning and design. Prior to joining URS, he was president and CEOand a member of the board of directors of Fay, Spofford & Thorndike Inc.

The Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) announced the hiring of Bea Reyna-Hickey as the agency's chief financial officer who will oversee the Finance and Performance Management Department. 

Foothill Transit promoted LaShawn Gillespie to director of Customer Service and Operations. Gillespie started with the agency in January of 2006 with more than a decade of experience in public relations, marketing, logistics and business development and quickly advanced to director of Procurement. Foothill Transit promoted Lauren Festner to director of Vehicle Technology and Maintenance. Festner was promoted to sustainability manager in 2011. Foothill Transit named Joseph Raquel director of planning. Raquel joined Foothill Transit in 2008 as its director of information technology and was responsible for launching the agency's SMARTBus vehicle data system and HASTUS installations.

Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam Inc. (LAN) hired Gary L. Donn, P.E., to lead the expansion of its traffic engineering and transportation planning practice in Miami and Southern Florida. 

Gina Stough has joined First Transit as its director of Learning and Development. Stough is responsible for overseeing First Transit University, a training program for all First Transit managers to increase employee awareness and improve customer service techniques, as well as other efforts focused on internal talent development and training.

The city of Sioux Falls and First Transit Inc. announces the appointment of Eric Meyerson to general manager of the transit system. Meyerson will be responsible for handling contractual services and daily operations at First Transit’s Sioux Falls location. 

Mauro "Mac" Calcaño is the new vice president of human resources for Dallas Area Rapid Transit. He brings more than 30 years of senior leadership in human resources from such premier brands as Sara Lee Corp., Chiquita Brands International and Timex Group USA Inc.

Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad (MBCR) is pleased to announce the appointment of John Orrison as director of Operations Planning. Orrison will oversee and manage the design, scheduling, and performance of service provided by MBCR.

Salem-Keizer Transit is pleased to announce the selection of Roy Burling as director of Finance and Sadie Carney as director of Community Relations. Burling has extensive public sector finance experience having served in various financial management positions and Carney has a background in marketing and community outreach, including work with the Cities of Beaverton and St. Helens.

Systra announces the appointment of William (Bill) Crosbie, as CEO of its U.S. subsidiary. Crosbie will be responsible for leading the overall expansion and strategic development of Systra in the U.S. market.