The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (L.A. Metro) has appointed three employees into executive-level positions. Darcy Buryniuk has been appointed chief program management officer, Ilyssa DeCasperis has been appointed chief people officer and Ray Sosa, deputy chief of planning, has been promoted to chief planning officer.
"I am thrilled to welcome Darcy and Ilyssa to L.A. Metro and congratulate Ray on his promotion," said Stephanie Wiggins, L.A. Metro CEO. "These three leaders will help shape and guide L.A. Metro as we implement our ambitious plans to provide world-class transit services that improve Angelenos’ quality of life."
Buryniuk
A civil engineer, Buryniuk brings more than 35 years of experience leading global design and transit projects to L.A. Metro as he spearheads the agency’s current capital program, working to transform public transportation in Los Angeles County. The program includes the LAX/L.A. Metro Transit Center set to open later this year.
Buryniuk’s previous large rail infrastructure projects with cumulative global project values totaling more than $30 billion include the Taipei Metro Orange and Blue lines, North South Railway Project across Saudi Arabia, Dubai Metro Green Line extension, Kuala Lumpur Metro Line 1, Hong Kong Shatin to Central Link Metro line, Singapore to Kuala Lumpur High-Speed Rail tender, Melbourne Airport railway and the Brisbane CrossRiverRail stations and tunnels project. Buryniuk holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in civil engineering from Queen’s University at Kingston, Ontario, Calif.
"Darcy has built mega projects around the world and his experience will be invaluable as we build a transit system that meets and exceeds our customers’ expectations," Wiggins said.
DeCasperis
DeCasperis brings more than 35 years of legal experience and 24 years in human resources management to L.A. Metro. In her new role, she will be responsible for aligning with the business strategy and goals of the agency and helping build out key areas for strategic growth, including talent acquisition, performance management, learning and development. Most recently, she served as the chief people officer for Metrolink, where she focused on increasing employee engagement and reducing recruitment times. During her tenure, Metrolink was certified as a "Most Loved Workplace" by Best Practice Institute research and analysis.
Prior to joining Metrolink, DeCasperis served as the vice president of human resources at Doctors Hospital in Riverside Calif., where she developed and implemented employee experience strategies. She also spent two years at New York City’s Metropolitan Transit Authority in labor relations and she has represented medical schools, healthcare facilities and school districts as a labor negotiator. She holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from St. John’s University and a Juris Doctor degree from Brooklyn Law School.
"When Ilyssa and I worked together at Metrolink, I came to value and depend on her strategic counsel, her experience and expertise in working with organized labor and her long track record of leadership in human capital development," Wiggins said. "I’m delighted to be working with her again and am looking forward to her positive impact on L.A. Metro during this critical period for the agency."
Sosa
Sosa brings to L. A. Metro more than 25 years in transportation project planning at the local, national and global levels. He started his career at L.A. Metro where he worked for 10 years before leaving to work in the private sector for the next 16 years. Since his return to L. A. Metro in 2022, he has demonstrated exceptional leadership in steering planning projects from inception through to environmental clearance and the securement of funding ready to hand off for construction. Sosa has been instrumental in managing teams on several L.A. Metro bus, rail and multimodal projects. L.A. Metro says Sosa’s role on the agency's Gold Line Phase 1 and the Regional Connector Transit Corridor underscores his expertise in guiding major planning projects into construction.
Sosa is a native of Los Angeles and earned his bachelor of arts degree in government from Dartmouth College and a master’s degree in Transportation from the University of California-Los Angeles school of urban planning.
"Over his long career with L.A. Metro and in the private sector, Ray helped steer dozens of projects from inception through environmental clearance and into construction. During the past few years, he has also helped secure critical funding to keep our massive capital program on track. We look forward to working with Ray in his new role to deliver on our promises to L.A. County voters and to build a world-class transit system of which Angelenos can be proud," Wiggins said.
