Top 40 Under 40 2014: Vanessa Rauschenberger

Sept. 22, 2014
Vanessa Rauschenberger , Planning Manager, Gold Coast Transit District

Vanessa Rauschenberger is the planning manager at Gold Coast Transit District and has more than 10 years of professional experience in the transportation/transit industry. Growing up in Oxnard, California, Rauschenberger knew she wanted to either become an artist or an architect. It was during the pursuit of her degree in city and regional planning, however, that she discovered her passion was in planning, a career path which satisfied her need to be creative and think in terms of the “big picture.”

In 2001 Rauschenberger moved to New York City to complete her Master’s in urban planning, during which she worked for the Brooklyn Center for Urban Environment where she taught students about how construction of major infrastructure projects like the Brooklyn Bridge helped transform the city.

From 2004 to 2009 she worked as an associate planner/project manager for the NYC Department of Transportation, working on numerous “complete street” re-designs, including Brooklyn’s Grand Army Plaza and 7th Avenue/Penn Station and managing the city’s Safe Routes to Schools Program.

Taking the opportunity to shift gears and return to her hometown, Rauschenberger moved back to Oxnard in 2009, hoping to be able to help improve transportation options in her hometown. She began working for Gold Coast Transit District (GCTD) in 2010 first as a consultant/volunteer on the Vineyard Avenue Community Transit Plan and, soon afterward, was hired as a full-time transit planner.

In her role at GCTD she is responsible for managing fixed-route service planning and ensuring high-quality service delivery. She also provides leadership and project management skills, while ensuring successful implementation of transit technology projects and is currently working on GCTD’s first short range transit plan in more than a decade.

In her time at GCTD, she has spearheaded numerous leadership roles, including leading the implementation of new transit technologies such as scheduling software, which resulted in considerable savings for the agency and improved on-time performance. Additionally, Rauschenberger established a Planning & Scheduling Advisory Team that brings both bus operators and planning staff together to help find ways to improve service.

In 2013, Rauschenberger helped to develop a popular new bus route, Route 21, which now carries more than 20,000 monthly passengers. She also developed a set of fixed-route service planning standards and guidelines for the agency that won unanimous board support and continues to lead agency-wide efforts to bring innovative changes into fruition, including implementing Google Transit, which has contributed to record ridership increases.

Rauschenberger currently serves as vice-chair of the Transit Operators Advisory Committee, which advises the Ventura County Transportation Commission (VCTC) on all transit-related matters in the county. She is also a member of Young Professionals in Transportation, a Washington, D.C., based non-profit, and the American Planning Association. She holds a bachelor’s degree in city and regional planning from Cal Poly State University, and a master’s in urban planning from Hunter College, City University of New York.

She currently lives in Camarillo, California, with her husband Justin and two dogs, Jersey and Jackson.

“What I enjoy most about being a transit planner is collaborating and learning from passionate and dedicated co-workers who strive each day to improve the service we provide. In addition, working at a smaller agency that is experiencing a period of growth affords me the opportunity to see and learn about all aspects of how a transit agency works. From navigating the challenges that change brings, to the energizing process of planning for both our near- and long-term future, my work is constantly evolving and I look forward to learning something new each day.”

“Going to college in a small town with very limited transit options, I was determined to move to a city where no car was required. After attending the American Planning Association Conference in New York in 2000, I knew that was the city for me. The next year I made the move from California and I immediately embraced the freedom that world-class public transportation provided. When transit is so good that you don’t have to look at a schedule because you know the next bus or train will arrive in a few minutes, you can focus on living your life instead of worrying about being stranded. Years later, when I eventually moved back to my hometown, I was determined to work in the field of public transportation knowing that good public transit is essential to the well-being of residents in any city, no matter its size.”

“In the future, I'd like to see funding for the operation of transit service accepted as a service that benefits the entire community.  It is usually accepted that the cost maintaining streets and sidewalks and other city infrastructure is to be shared by all, yet the cost of operating a bus is seen by some as a subsidy for just for the underprivileged. I’d like to see that perception changed through investment in incorporating public art into bus stops, offering mobile payment options that make it easy to pay the fare, and providing high-frequency service that would make transit more universally accepted as a valuable community asset.”

Top40 2014 542179bdf2d22
Top40 2014 542179bdf2d22
Top40 2014 542179bdf2d22
Top40 2014 542179bdf2d22
Top40 2014 542179bdf2d22
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