People on the move: VRE, TARTA Keolis North America

Virginia Railway Express (VRE), the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority (TARTA) and Keolis North America have made new appointments to their respective leadership teams. 

VRE selects next COO 

VRE has selected Chris Henry as its next COO, effective March 14, 2026. Henry will transition into the role from his current position as director of rail operations and will be the first COO since 2019. 

As COO, Henry will ensure operational readiness to increase service in accordance with the recently adopted System Plan 2050. Henry will be responsible for the delivery of safe and reliable commuter service for all passengers and stakeholders, day-to-day rail operations, mechanical operations and promoting and ensuring a positive customer experience.  He will also provide oversight and guidance to the departments of Rail Operations and Mechanical Operations.  

Henry first joined VRE as director of operations in 2010. In this previous role, he was responsible for ensuring reliable daily operations of rail service, the management of operating contracts, incident response coordination and partnering with mechanical leadership to align mechanical priorities with operating needs. Henry also led the customer service teams and operational communications to passengers. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Florida in Orlando and a Masters of Business Administration from Rollins College.  

TARTA promotes Kattie Bond to chief capital officer 

Bond joined TARTA in September of 2024 as director of capital projects and has played a major role in several projects that have elevated the long-term viability and customer experience at TARTA facilities. In the last 18 months, TARTA has: 

• Completed renovations to Operators areas at the Central Avenue garage and TARTA’s Transit Hub. 
• Completed renovations to employee restrooms, with renovations continuing at Central Avenue. 
• Replaced the bus apron at Central Avenue and the fence around the employee lot. 
• Added dozens of new bus shelters to stops and dozens of new vehicles to the fleet, including TARTA’s first full-sized electric vehicles.  

“We have a wonderful team here at TARTA, and I am honored to be asked to take an expanded role in it,” Bond said. “Over the past year and a half, we’ve made real progress improving our facilities while still being a great steward of public funds. That’s something we’ll look to continue in the coming years as long overdue updates take place in our maintenance garage, our hub and elsewhere.” 

In this role, Bond will provide strategic oversight for all capital programs. TARTA’s Facilities, Buildings and Grounds Department will now also report to Bond, placing all capital and facility-related functions under a single leadership post. 

“We have come a long was as an organization in a few short years, and Kattie’s contribution will be crucial to continuing that momentum,” said TARTA Deputy CEO Rick Bailey. “Capital projects have an impact on customer satisfaction, team morale, public perception and so much more. The projects we’re planning will have a significant positive impact on TARTA and the people who depend on it every day for years to come.” 

Keolis North America appoints next executive vice president of finance 

Keolis North America appointed Matthieu Lonchamp as executive vice president of finance. In this role, Lonchamp will join the North American Executive Committee, leading the company’s financial strategy across operations in the U.S. and Canada. He will be based out of the company’s North American headquarters in Boston. 

Most recently, Lonchamp served as the CFO for North America Low Voltage Transformer and Global Field Devices at Schneider Electric. During Lonchamp’s career he has held various finance roles, including credit manager, controller, business partner and CFO. At Schneider Electric, he held several international leadership roles, including CFO for Hong Kong and Macau. 

“Matthieu’s global perspective and proven ability to lead financial strategy within complex organizations make him a tremendous addition to our leadership team in North America,” said Keolis North America President and CEO Brad Thomas. “His experience driving transformation and financial performance across large-scale operations will be invaluable as we continue to strengthen our business and deliver greater value to our public agency partners.”