Alexander J. Houck serves as the deputy chief safety officer for the Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT MTA), where he oversees safety management system (SMS) programs. In his role, colleagues say Houck embraces a safety culture that is woven into the fabric of how the agency functions.  

This culture is demonstrated through a number of safety-driven initiatives Houck has implemented during his tenure. For example, over the past year, he served as project manager to develop MTA’s rider code of conduct and passenger exclusion policy, which required him to navigate through legislative requirements, stakeholder expectations and operational realities for a successful implementation. This initiative resulted in strengthening the agency’s response to assaults and its ability to protect frontline workers and customers. Thanks in part to Houck’s efforts, the program received the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) Gold Award for Bus Security, and Houck was the recipient of this year’s MTA Administrator’s Award.  

Another initiative Houck took the lead on was the rollout of a 988 suicide and crisis lifeline awareness campaign. This included a systemwide risk evaluation and implementing Mental Health First Aid® training for employees, equipping staff to support each other and riders. 

Additionally, Houck led the development of MDOT MTA’s Bike Empathy Training Program to help improve interactions and understanding between transit operators and vulnerable road users, which was endorsed by BikeMore, a Baltimore-based bicycle advocacy organization. The program’s success was recognized by the city, leading Houck to bring the training to the Baltimore City Department of Transportation’s Charm City Circulator—growing the safety impact beyond the agency.  

Houck is also involved in several agency committees, including chairing MDOT MTA’s Joint Safety Committee. Here, he works with frontline staff and leadership so that any safety solution is practical and sustainable. The committee’s work was published in a research brief by the Transit Workforce Center, gaining national recognition and serving as a blueprint for other agencies. He also sits on the agency’s artificial intelligence (AI) steering committee, ensuring AI integration with operations and safety is done responsibly.  

Nationally, Houck is a panel member of the Transportation Cooperative Research Program’s project on SMS implementation. He’s also a member of APTA’s Safety Coordinating Council and MDOT’s Safety Commission. He’s a graduate of APTA’s Emerging Leaders Program, and he’s currently going through the Latinos In Transit Leadership Academy.  

Colleagues say Houck is known for building systems, fostering collaboration and driving measurable improvements in safety outcomes—describing his work as a balance of technical expertise, strategic thinking and a genuine commitment to people. 

Is there a specific experience that led you to where you are today? 

University of Virginia (UVA) is one of very few schools with a university bus system with student operators. I trained and tested for my CDL between fall and spring semester of my first year of undergraduate and fell in love with driving and the camaraderie of the organization—shout out to UTS! Maintaining my CDL led me to getting a job specializing in transit safety at the University of Maryland, where I still drive part-time. This led to pursuing more opportunities until I arrived at my home agency, MDOT MTA. 

What do you enjoy most about your job? 

I have so many opportunities to communicate with people—passengers, employees, industry colleagues, politicians and community leaders—about how to improve a vital service that affects everyone in the urban ecosystem. My job isn't finger wagging and telling people what they can't do, which is what people usually think about safety. It's about creating transparency and accountability across the agency, building a positive and trusting safety culture and supporting the MTA to be more efficient because we plan, design, build and operate the right way. 

What’s the most challenging part of your job? 

Anyone who works in safety has a challenging job because a lot of coworkers see your department as either a checkbox or a hurdle to overcome. I'm lucky to be able to speak to all employees during new employee orientation and our managers during specific supervisor training about how safety's job is really to be the stakeholder that helps them get priority for their job hazard concerns, obtain resources and act as a true partner interested in their success. Going from people avoiding your phone calls because you're "safety" to calling you because you've shown a willingness to listen and help has been a challenge worth taking on. 

What is the accomplishment you’re most proud of and why? 

I was really proud of my teams who helped MDOT MTA implement a new rider code of conduct aimed at creating rider accountability and protecting our operators and other passengers from assault, especially given the compressed timeline we had to enact the legislative requirement. It also culminated in an APTA Gold Award for MDOT MTA. Because I lost my dad to suicide in 2005, the accomplishment that is the most meaningful, both personally and professionally, was our project to update and install 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline signage at all of our rail stations while simultaneously implementing a Mental Health First Aid class, which has trained over 100 people across 40 departments since 2023. 

What is an accomplishment you would like to work towards in your career? 

It may be pie in the sky but really changing perceptions around public transit. I think that is starting to happen at a more grassroots level but having people truly believe transit is a safe and efficient way to travel, and even preferable to driving, is going to take a huge investment of time, funding and patience. I know when I commute on the MARC train, I constantly run into coworkers and neighbors, and I've seen plenty of old classmates and friends on the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority when visiting Washington, D.C., on the weekends. I believe that transit could actually be a panacea to the loneliness epidemic so many people are experiencing, and I'm living proof of that—my great-grandparents met on a bus! 

What is your best advice you can share from your area of expertise? 

Always ask questions. Not to challenge but to understand. Be humble with your inquiries and don't ask a question thinking you already know the answer. Safety professionals are SMEs in safety, we're not SMEs in procurement, law enforcement, engineering, IT, track maintenance (you get the point), so we need to defer to others' expertise in those areas and work with them to create those incremental improvements each and every day.