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Marie Therese Dominguez, Esq
Commissioner at New York State Department of TransportationMarie Therese Dominguez was unanimously confirmed as New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Transportation Commissioner on June 20, 2019.
Ms. Dominguez has worked in the transportation, water and energy infrastructure, safety and logistics sectors for over 25 years, having served in numerous leadership positions within the Federal government and private sector. In 2015, she was nominated by President Obama and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) at the U.S. Department of Transportation. At PHMSA, Ms. Dominguez managed the development and enforcement of safety regulations and oversaw safety operations for the nation's interstate gas and liquid pipelines as well as all hazardous materials shipments by rail, highway, sea and air. Prior to leading PHMSA, she served as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works at the U.S. Department of Defense, overseeing policy and budget direction for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. She has served as Vice President for Government Relations and Public Policy at the United States Postal Service, where she led legislative and public policy initiatives for the country's then, second largest civilian employer. She has served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Counsel at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA); Special Assistant to the Chairman at the National Transportation Safety Board and as a Special Assistant to President Clinton and Associate Director of Presidential Personnel in the White House. For the last few years she served as a member of the Virginia Aviation Board overseeing the policy, programs and funding for all 66 airports in the state of Virginia and as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy. Ms. Dominguez obtained her J.D. from Villanova University School of Law and her B.A. in American Studies from Smith College.
Ydanis Rodriguez
Commissioner at New York City Department of TransportationYdanis Rodriguez was appointed Commissioner of the Department of Transportation in December, 2021 by Mayor Eric Adams – and began serving in the position on January 1, 2022. As NYC DOT Commissioner, Rodriguez oversees more than 5,500 employees, an annual operating budget of over $1.1 billion, and a 10-year capital budget of $19.7 billion. Rodriguez is the first Latino and only the second person of color to serve in the position.
In serving in this role, Commissioner Rodriguez has expressed the aspiration that, with the leadership of Mayor Adams, he will work with the people of NYC DOT to make New York City the most walkable and bikeable city in the nation, a vision which will guide his leadership. He will work to bring government, local communities, the private sector, and academia together to make this vision a reality.
Previously, Commissioner Rodriguez served in the New York City Council, representing the 10th District that includes the neighborhoods of Washington Heights, Inwood and Marble Hill. First elected in 2009, he became a member of the Council’s Transportation Committee, which he then chaired from 2014 through 2021. As Chair, Rodriguez led oversight of transportation agencies, spearheading the fight for improvements in mass transit and sustainable transportation – including expanded bus and bicycle lanes and the growth of bike share. Rodriguez worked closely with NYC DOT on the successful implementation of Car-Free Earth Day and was heavily involved in the annual Riders Respond Tour, where activists and officials call attention to mass transit by riding the subway over a 24-hour period. Together with former Speaker Corey Johnson, Rodriguez also co-led the fight to create Fair Fares, a program that provides a 50 percent discount on transit for New Yorkers who live under the poverty line. He sponsored more than three dozen other bills enacted into law – including those that protect pedestrians and cyclists, like the Streets Master Plan and the Dangerous Vehicle Abatement Program, as well as those focused on improving and expanding the rights of immigrants, women, workers, and New Yorkers seeking social justice.
Prior to elected office, Commissioner Rodriguez taught in New York City public schools for more than fifteen years. As a teacher, he co-founded two schools: Gregorio Luperon High School, founded in 1994 to support newly arrived immigrants from Latin America transitioning to the American educational system, as well as the Community Health Academy of the Heights, a school that has served 6th through 12th grades since 2005.
Born in the Dominican Republic, Rodriguez arrived in New York City in 1983 at the age of 18. Like most immigrants who come to America to pursue their dreams, he worked tirelessly -- including as a livery cab driver -- to put himself through City College of the City University of New York, where he earned both Bachelors and Masters degrees. At CUNY, he helped lead a student movement to maintain higher education at a cost accessible to working-class
and middle-class New Yorkers.
Laura Chace
President and CEO of ITS AmericaLaura Chace was named President and CEO of ITS America in August, 2021. Previously, she served as the association’s Chief Operating Officer. In her role as COO and now as President and CEO, Laura's focus is to promote policies that advance the development and safe deployment of intelligent transportation technologies throughout the United States in support of safer, greener, smarter mobility for all.
Chace has extensive experience in strategic planning, operations, communications and advocacy, and a proven track record of implementing complex initiatives with strong engagement and collaboration among stakeholders. As COO, she led operations across ITS America with a focus on technology’s ability to save lives and reduce crashes on U.S. roadways, reduce congestion, minimize transportation’s carbon footprint, and provide seamless mobility and transportation choices for all Americans.
Chace serves on the External Advisory Board for the U.S. Department of Energy’s SMART Mobility Lab consortium under the Officer of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).
She is passionate and speaks often about the need to include more female and diverse voices in the transportation workforce to create better outcomes for all who use the transportation system.
Laura is a founding member of the MobilityXX initiative, which is focused on increasing the number of women in transportation by 10 percent in 10 years.
Chace brings 15 years in trade association management to her new role, having previously worked at USTelecom and the American Trucking Association. Early in her career, she served in the Clinton Administration at the U.S. Department of Justice Office and in the White House. She holds a Bachelor of Art’s degree from Colgate University.
Arthur T. O'Connor, Ph.D., P.E. ITS-NY President
USDOT/FHWA New YorkArthur T. O’Connor has been with the USDOT/FHWA for over 35 years. Art co-established the New York City Metropolitan Office in late 1996/early 1997 and has spent over 26 years working very closely with all downstate metropolitan partner agencies in the advancement of a wide range of federally-funded ITS and operations programs and initiatives. He spent the previous 9 years in the USDOT/FHWA Boston (Cambridge) office as a Civil (highway) Engineer in a variety of traffic engineering, safety, and ITS related positions. He also spent the previous 6 years as a Structural Engineer in private sector consultant & construction engineering firms with specialization in the nuclear power industry.
Art has served as an Adjunct Faculty Professor at Stony Brook University (Long Island, NY) and at his alma mater, Merrimack College (North Andover, Mass).
Art holds a Ph.D. and Master of Science in Transportation Planning & Engineering from the New York University Tandon School of Engineering, a Master in Business Administration from Suffolk University (Boston, MA), and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Merrimack College. He is a Registered Professional Engineer in multiple states. He is honored to serve on the ITS-NY Board of Directors and as President of ITS-NY. He is also a member of both ASCE and ITE.
Matthew Juckes (Co-Chair)
Systems Engineer at AimsunMatthew Juckes brings more than 25 years of professional experience in intelligent transportation systems (ITS), and transportation modeling and planning. His experience and expertise include a broad range of business development, project management, and transportation modeling, while serving in the roles of systems engineer, project manager, lead modeler, transportation modeler. Matthew’s expertise includes integrated corridor management (ICM), ITS modeling, large scale microscopic and mesoscopic simulation models, data, analysis and optimization of transportation databases, and Connected Autonomous Vehicles modeling. He has worked extensively with Aimsun, Paramics, VISSIM, Synchro/Simtraffic, and CORSIM. Through his years of experience both in modeling and in systems engineering he has had several papers and articles published and has presented at various TRB and ITS related events such as the TRB Annual Meeting, ITS Canada, ITS World Congress, and USDOT ICM workshops. Matthew is currently the Co-Chair of the Emerging Concepts in Freeway Management Sub Commit of the TRB Freeway Management Committee.
Judith Peter, P.E. (Co-Chair)
Manager, Joint Transportation Management Center (JTMC) at NYSDOTJudith has worked for New York State Department of Transportation for over 25 years in the Construction, Traffic Safety and Mobility and Planning Unit. She also served as an Assistant to the Regional Director for 8 years.
Her current position is as a Joint Transportation Management Center (JTMC) Manager. In this capacity, Judith supervises the daily activities of the JTMC; informs Region 11 staff about incidents of major significance; reviews and coordinates construction calls to the JTMC, including late running construction; participates in Monthly Partner’s Meetings, Monthly Equipment Meetings; reviews and assigns JTMC staff schedules; and works on weather related incidents. Judith also serves as a leader on the Region 11 Emergency Management Team.
Judith is a Panel Chair – TRB - National Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine; NCHRP Project 03-148. Judith is also a member of the AASHTO - CTSO Communications Technology Working Group and a member of the TRB ACP15 - Standing Committee on Intelligent Transportation Systems.
Judith holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering from the Pratt Institute and a Master’s Degree in Transportation Engineering from The City College of New York. Judith is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of New York. Judith Peter is also an Adjunct Professor at the City College of New York.
Amar Ali, PMP
Director of Operations at TransCore ITS, LLCMr. Amar Ali is Director , Operations , responsible for the management of the ITS projects in the Northeast region for TransCore ITS, LLC. During his time with TransCore, Mr. Ali was involved in deploying and supporting TransCore’s Advanced Transportation Management System, “TransSuite” , in number of locations in the northeast region and he was involved in many other ITS programs such as the Transit Signal Priority “TSP”, and the Connected Vehicles “CV”. Mr. Ali has over than 15 years of experience in the US and Internationally. Beside his experience with TransCore, Mr.Ali was involved in several Transportation and ITS projects in China, Australia and the Middle East. Mr. Ali holds a Master’s degree in the major of systems & industrial engineering and he is a certified Project Manager Professional “PMP” . Mr. Ali is active member within the Project Management Institute” PMI” since 2016.
Animesh Balse (CAV Training Course Instructor)
Experienced Professional at LeidosMr. Animesh Balse is an experienced professional working for Leidos with a background in automotive and electrical engineering.
He holds a Master’s degree in electric-drive vehicle engineering.
Animesh leads the technology transfer team at the Saxton Transportation Operations Laboratory with a primary focus of accelerating adoption of Cooperative Driving Automation technologies. His specialty provides a focus on providing Infrastructure Owners and Operators with the resources and technical knowledge necessary for successful deployment of CAV technologies.
Andrew Bata (Moderator)
Regional Manager at International Association for Public Transport (UITP)Andrew Bata is the Regional Manager, North America for UITP (International Association for Public Transport). UITP is the leading global transit association (established in 1835) with thousands of members (transport operators, industry suppliers, academics and consultants) worldwide and present in over 100 countries. His role in UITP features engagement with members focusing on the US and Canada, organizing virtual and in person events, sharing global information and connecting peers. He is a career urban transportation professional having served in various executive roles for the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority where he led units of service planning, innovation and new technology deployment. His focus is enhancing public transit by championing sophisticated customer service concepts including advanced real time information systems, “21st Century” station design features and rolling stock design concepts that meet current passenger comfort demands and service throughput requirements. Active in high technology professional associations, he is the former president and current board member of the Intelligent Transportation Society of New York. He is also an adjunct professor of transportation at Columbia and New York Universities.
His life focus is advocating high quality metropolitan quality of life via sustainable, accessible, modern, reliable urban transportation systems.
Jennifer Bates, P.E.
Port Authority of New York and New JerseyJennifer has been a traffic engineer with the Port Authority of NY & NJ for over 21 years, joining the agency in 1998. Over the years Jennifer has overseen and worked on major traffic planning, design, safety, and operations initiatives and projects at all PA facilities. She is currently the Principal Engineer for the Traffic Engineering Transportation Technologies group which is responsible for ITS planning, design, and construction support services to improve operational efficiency and help optimize the use of available transportation system network capacity. She is also responsible for managing the agency’s ITS program to help realize the agency’s ITS Strategic Plan mission through the use of transportation technologies.
Abiyu Berlie
ITS Expert/Consultant at ITS AfricaMr. Berlie has over 30 years of experience and expertise in ITS. He worked for 25 years in the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority; the largest multi-modal Transportation Agency in North America. He served as a board member for ITS New York; and was inducted to the ITS New York Hall of Fame in December 2020.
During his tenure in the NYC MTA, as ITS Program Manager and Coordinator, he pioneered development of the MTA B&T ITS Strategic Plan; which has been used as a living document to guide implementation of the ITS Program, for the Agency.
Serving as a key member in the NYC-Metro-ITS Steering Committee. Mr. Berlie played a leading role in advancing ITS in the NYC Metro Area. His major contributions encompass Planning, Development and Implementation of the National and Regional ITS Architectures for the New York City Metropolitan and the Tri-State Regions. The ITS Architecture has been serving approx. 20 million travelers; becoming a strong foundation for building the ITS Program of the NYC Metro area; which is the largest Urban Region in US.
Since his retirement from the NYC MTA Bridges & Tunnels in 2015; Mr. Berlie has been working as ITS Expert and Consultant in Africa. He has extensive experience in knowledge and technology transfer, capacity building and expansion of ITS internationally; by providing voluntary services and working for over 10 years in Africa; including in his native country, Ethiopia. He co-founded ITS Ethiopia (www.itsethiopia.org) and the ITS Africa Working Group, which has been working to develop an ITS-Africa Society and expand ITS in the continent.
Mr. Berlie has an MBA degree from the Yale University School of Management and a BA in economics from the University of Pennsylvania.
Joseph Bovenzi, AICP
Program Manager at Genesee Transportation CouncilJoe Bovenzi is a Program Manager at the Genesee Transportation Council (GTC). Joe manages transportation operations planning tasks including implementation of the Regional Transportation Systems Management and Operations Strategic Plan, facilitation of interagency coordination committees and initiatives, updates to the Congestion Management Process and Regional ITS Architecture, and transportation infrastructure resiliency and adaptation planning. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from SUNY Geneseo, a Master’s in Geography from Queen’s University in Kingston, Canada, and a Master’s in Public Administration from SUNY Brockport. Joe is a graduate of the I-95 Corridor Coalition Operations Academy and a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners.
Craig Cipriano
Senior Vice President, National Director – Zero Emissions Mobility of STV Inc.Craig has more than 33 years of experience planning and executing large-scale, multi-dimensional fleet and infrastructure programs for public transit systems. He served as President of New York City’s MTA Bus Company, leading the nation’s largest bus transit agency through the pandemic, and setting its strategy to a zero emissions fleet by 2040 and served as Interim President of New York City Transit, leading 50,000 employees at the largest public transportation agency in North America with an operating budget of $13 billion.
He earned a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering from Stony Brook University and a Master of City and Regional Planning degree from Rutgers University.
Michael Davis
Principal Transportation Analyst at Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council (GBNRTC)Michael Davis is a Principal Transportation Analyst and has been with the Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council since 2009. Michael heads up all of the traffic analysis, simulation, and modeling efforts for the Metropolitan Planning Organization, leading many significant projects, substantial studies, and essential committees. He manages the development of dynamic traffic simulation models and is continuously engaged in all aspects of data analytics, calibration/validation, analysis, evaluation, and reporting practices. He is heavily involved in collaboration with stakeholder agencies on improvement, modification, and optimization of operational infrastructure. Michael’s background includes a B.A. from the State University of New York at Geneseo while dual majoring in Geography and Education. This was followed by a M.A. from the University at Buffalo in Geography, which specialized in Geographic Information Systems. Michael has acquired knowledge across the country from various USDOT-FHWA courses, conferences, workshops, and exchanges. He has been involved in extensive training with the leading transportation consulting companies, traffic engineering firms, and transportation software developers. Michael currently oversees numerous transportation planning initiatives for the GBNRTC.
Kelly Dixon, AICP
Principal Planner at Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council (GBNRTC)Kelly Dixon serves as the Project Management Lead for the ITS4US Deployment in Buffalo, NY. She has over ten years of service at the GBNRTC and is involved in the Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Long Range Transportation Planning efforts, Coordinated Human Services Transportation Planning and the transportation demand management initiative Go Buffalo Niagara which is working to expand multi-modal transportation options in the region. On the sustainability front, Kelly coordinates the One Region Forward Implementation Council which serves to guide implementation of Buffalo Niagara’s Regional Plan for Sustainable Development and she is also a member of Erie County’s Climate Change Taskforce.
Prior to her current position, Kelly served as the Executive Director for the Center for Transportation Excellence of New York, a mobility management company specializing in the coordination of Non-Emergency Medical Transportation for governmental entities and Medicaid Managed Care programs. She holds a Master of Urban and Regional Planning degree from the University at Buffalo.
Walter Dunn, P.E. (Moderator)
Dunn EngineeringWalter Dunn is the President of Dunn Engineering Associates, P.C., which he formed in 1981 after being employed by Region 10 of the NYSDOT. He is known as the Father of INFORM, one
of the first ITS projects in NYS.
His leadership and expertise in ITS Planning, Design, and Operations have been recognized by the following awards which he has received from various professional organizations, societies and his peers:
1) Member of Board of Directors of NYS Intelligent
Transportation Society (NYS ITS) – 2014-2023
2) Lifetime Achievement Award, ASCE Long Island Branch
(2020)
3) Hall of Fame, NYS ITS, 2016
4) Emeritus Member, Freeway Operations Committee of
Transportation Research Board, 2016-Present
5) Member of Freeway Operations Committee of TRB – 1976-
2003
6) Distinguished Service as Mentor, Texas A&M University,
Texas Transportation Institute, 1994, 1995, 1996 & 2004
7) Ivor S. Wisepart Transportation Engineer Award, ITE Met
Section of NY & NJ, 1999
8) Dedicated Leadership Award, ITE Metropolitan Section of
NY & NJ, 1990
9) President of ITE Met Section of NY & NJ, 1990.
10) Engineer of the Year Award, NYS Association of
Transportation Engineers, Region 10, 1976
He has served as Principal Investigator and author of FHWA Handbooks:
• Freeway Incident Management and associated video “Open
Roads”
• Communications Handbook
• Managing Travel for Planned Special Events
• Alternate Route Plans
• NCHRP Synthesis 318, Safe and Quick Clearance of Traffic
Incidents
He wrote courses for NHI and served as the Senior Instructor on courses entitled “Managing Travel for Planned Special Events” and “Incident Command System for Transportation Engineers”.
He has served as DEA’s Principal-in-Charge for TMC Operations at JTMC (NYSDOT Region 11) in Queens, NY, STICC and CRTMC (NYSDOT Region 1), I-81 TMC (Staunton, VA) and I-81 (Salem,
VA).
Matt Edelman
Retired at TRANSCOMMatt retired as Executive Director of TRANSCOM in 2016, where he served for over 25 years.
Prior to TRANSCOM, Matt was the Manager of the Freight Planning Division of the Port Authority of NY and NJ. He began his career at the New Jersey Department of Transportation, where he was Manager of the Office of Strategic Planning.
He is one of the founding members of ITS-New York, and was inducted into to the first class of the ITS-NY Hall of Fame.
He served as the first Chairman of the I-95 Coalition Steering Committee.
He received his MSCE from MIT, in Transportation. His BA was Wesleyan University.
Matt and his wife Debbie live in Howell, NJ.
Phillip Eng, P.E.
General Manager at Massachusetts Bay Transportation AuthorityPhillip Eng is the General Manager and CEO of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). A Civil Engineer with nearly 40 years of transportation experience, including President of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) Long Island Rail Road and Interim President of New York City Transit, Mr. Eng brings his abilities to spearhead challenging initiatives, modernize aging systems and prioritizing safety to bear for the MBTA.
Mr. Eng joined the MTA in 2017 as the Chief Operating Officer, where he drove initiatives and focused on updating transportation systems through the use of innovative technologies, including developing new fare payment applications and piloting new signaling systems. As Acting President for New York City Transit, Mr. Eng led the early efforts of the Subway Action Plan – a comprehensive stabilization and modernization effort to address the challenges facing the New York City subway. During his tenure at the Long Island Rail Road, he initiated the Forward program – a set of strategic initiatives aimed at improving service reliability and enhancing rider experience.
Mr. Eng began his career in public service in 1983 as a Junior Engineer at the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) where he gained expertise in Structures, Bridge Inspection, Maintenance, and Design and Construction. During his tenure at NYSDOT, Mr. Eng held positions of increasing leadership culminating as Executive Deputy Commissioner, throughout which he played a vital role improving project delivery for significant projects such as the I-81 Environmental Impact Study, the Rochester Train Station, and the construction of the new Kosciuszko and Mario M. Cuomo bridges.
Phillip Eng earned his Bachelor of Engineering at Cooper Union and is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers. In 2021 the American Society of Civil Engineers, Long Island Branch honored Mr. Eng with the Government Engineer of the Year award.
Tejaswi Gangadhariah
Senior ITS Analyst at Atkins North AmericaMr. Tejaswi Gangadharaiah brings over a decade of experience in ITS, applying a broad range of technologies including VMS, CCTV’s, Adaptive Signals, Connected Vehicle (CV) systems, and Wrong-way Driving Systems (WWDS). He has collaborated with the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT), equipping it with the resources and technical knowledge necessary for successful CAV technology implementation.
He holds a Master's degree in Transportation Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago.
Christopher W. Gatchell
Director of USDOT/FHWA New YorkChris Gatchell has 32 years of experience working for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and is currently the Director for the NYC Metro and Local Programs Management Office within the New York Division in Albany, NY. In this capacity, Chris is responsible for leading a diverse staff relative to project delivery on Federal-aid projects in the New York City Metro and Long Island areas. Chris is also responsible for working with staff on statewide local and discretionary grant program matters. These job duties entail providing technical assistance and oversight to various entities including the New York State Department of Transportation, the New York State Thruway Authority, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, New York City DOT, and local agencies. Functions include NEPA, design, procurement, construction, Civil Rights, ITS, local projects, and discretionary grants. Notable projects that Chris has been intimately involved with over the last decade include replacement of the Tappan Zee Bridge, Goethals Bridge, Kosciuszko Bridge, and the I-81 Viaduct. Notable projects in the pipeline include the BQE Triple Cantilever in Brooklyn and the Cross Harbor Freight Movement project in lower New York City. Prior to New York, Chris spent time in Massachusetts working on the Big Dig as a Senior Area Engineer and Safety Engineer; in North Carolina as an Area Engineer; and in FHWA’s Western Federal Lands Highway Division as a Project and Resident Engineer within its construction branch.
Xiaozheng (Sean) He, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteDr. Sean He is an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Dr. He’s research areas cover transportation system modeling and simulation, connected and autonomous vehicles, and Intelligent Transportation Systems. Dr. He is a committee member on the Network Modeling Standing Committee of TRB. He serves as an editorial board member for peerreviewed transportation research journals. He is also a technical committee member for several international conferences. Dr. He won the prestigious NSF CAREER Award in 2021.
Oliver Hoehne
Technical Fellow at WSP USAOliver Hoehne is a passionate Systems Engineering Practitioner, Technical Fellow, Project Manager, and the U.S. Global Technical Excellence Sector and Practice Lead on Systems Engineering, Communications and Control Systems for WSP USA, an architectural and engineering (A&E) consulting firm with approximately 50,000 employees in 500 offices across 40 countries. Mr. Hoehne is an INCOSE recognized Expert Systems Engineering Professional (ESEP) and Project Management Institute certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with 25+ years of extensive international and domestic experience in Systems and Software Engineering across industries, and has worked in leading Systems Engineering, Integration & Testing (SEIT) roles on large system of systems (SoS) like transportation and infrastructure programs. Oliver is currently spearheading the application of Agile MBSE to Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and the transition from traditional document centric engineering processes to improved Model Enhanced Systems Engineering approaches in legacy transportation projects.
Athena Hutchins, P.E., F. ASCE
Executive Director of Niagara International Transportation Technology Coalition (NITTEC)Athena Hutchins is the Executive Director of the Niagara International Transportation Technology Coalition (NITTEC) providing overall leadership and management responsibilities for the multi-agency international coalition of transportation entities in Western New York and Southern Ontario. As director of the Coalition, Athena is responsible for multi-agency Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) operations and technology deployment, information dissemination, standards development, incident management, and regional collaboration across international boundaries.
Athena’s professional career includes over 26 years of working in transportation on both the international and regional levels. Athena’s previous experience in design, construction and management for many modes of transportation includes intelligent transportation systems, toll plaza and public transportation.
Athena Hutchins is a Licensed New York State Professional Engineer with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University at Buffalo.
Athena’s professional affiliations include the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), WTS International, Intelligent Transportation Society of New York (ITS-NY) and ITS Canada. Athena is currently serving as a member of the Board of Directors for ITS-NY and a member of the Transportation Research Board Freeway Operations Committee and Regional Transportation Systems Management and Operations Committee.
Rob Jaffe, Ph.D, CSEP (Moderator)
Electrical and Systems Engineer at ConSysTecDr. Jaffe is an electrical and systems engineer with EE degrees from Cornell (BS) and Stanford (MS, PhD). After 13 years as a Research Staff Manager at IBM’s Research Division, in 1996 he founded Consensus Systems Technologies (“ConSysTec”) where he is President. Dr. Jaffe is also an INCOSE CSEP (International
Council on Systems Engineering, Certified Systems Engineering Professional).
From 1993-1996 Dr. Jaffe was Program Manager & Chief Architect for development of the USDOT National ITS Architecture, which he continues to extend and maintain to the present. He has developed over 90 regional ITS architectures in New York City, NY State, the US and internationally, including
Canada, Chile, Colombia, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and China. In 2019 he completed the ITS Conceptual Design for the Gui’an New Area in China's southwest Guizhou Province. He is also an instructor at the Rutgers University National Transit Institute where he developed and teaches Project Management for Transit Professionals both in-person and online.
Preston Judkins, P.E., MBA
Senior Project Manager and Traffic Engineer at ParsonsPreston Judkins is a Traffic Engineer and Project Manager for ITS Projects across North America, as well as signal timing, design, and operations. Projects include Border Crossings (Canada/Michigan, Mexico/California), Statewide Integration (Michigan, Illinois), Tollway ITS Lead (Indiana, Illinois, Rhode Island), County (Lake County), City (Chicago), and managed lane specific (Michigan, Virginia, Illinois, New York). Mr. Judkins graduated from the research intensive University of Wisconsin, where here received a BS in Civil Engineering and an MBA from the University of Illinois.
Rami Khashashina, P.E.
Administrative Engineer at New York State Department of TransportationRami Khashashina is a senior Administrative Engineer and is responsible for the management of the ITS projects including the Traffic Signal Controllers design and operation. Mr. Khashashina has over 26 years of experience in the US, as he is involved in several Transportation and ITS projects. Mr. Khashashina holds a master’s degree in Transportation Planning and Engineering from NYU Tandon School of Engineering acquired in 2002, a B.S. in EE from Amman University College for Applied Engineering, Jordan acquired in 1994 and is a NYS licensed Professional Engineer since 2005.
Charlie Kuenzel
President at Saratoga Springs History MuseumCharlie Kuenzel is a native Saratogian who is an award winning Science educator for 36 years in the Saratoga City School District. Charlie taught Geology and Astro-physics while serving as Department Chairman and owning Saratoga Tours LLC for 20 years. Over those twenty years, Charlie educated and entertained thousands of guests on the subject of the history of the City of Saratoga. Kuenzel is presently the President of the Saratoga Springs History Museum and writes a regular column found in a few local newspapers and magazines on the local history of this great city.
Steve Levine (Moderator)
Executive Director of TRANSCOMSteve Levine became the Executive Director of TRANSCOM in September of 2017. Founded in 1986, TRANSCOM has become a national model of how separate agencies can work together cooperatively to serve the travelling public. TRANSCOM (Transportation Operations Coordinating Committee) is a coalition of the 16 major highway, transit and public safety agencies in the New York/New Jersey/Connecticut region. It is uniquely organized as a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation, headquartered in Jersey City, NJ.
Prior to joining TRANSCOM, he had a diverse mix of public and private sector transportation experience. His prior experience in the private sector included serving as the E-ZPass® NY Program Manager at Conduent and senior consulting positions with Jacobs Engineering, Group, Kimley-Horn and Associates, and TransCore ITS. He also spent 13 years with the Texas Department of Transportation in the Houston District Office. He holds an M.P.A. from Baruch College, a Master’s in Civil Engineering from Penn State and Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering from The Cooper Union. He is also a member of the ITS NY and ITS NJ Boards.
Adam S. Levine, P.E., AICP (Moderator)
Executive Director of New York Metropolitan Transportation CouncilAdam was named as the Executive Director of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council (NYMTC) in March 2023. In this role, Adam leads the second-largest metropolitan planning organization in the country, ensuring the flow of nearly $37 billion in funding for transportation projects and studies in New York City, Long Island and the lower Hudson Valley. Prior to this, Adam served at the New York State Department of Transportation for over 30 years, most recently as the Regional Traffic Engineer for New York City. Adam has diverse experience in traffic operations, highway design, major projects, and public and governmental affairs. Recent prior NYSDOT positions include Regional Traffic Engineer and Transportation Management Center manager for the Hudson Valley, and Public Information Officer for New York City. Prior to his time as PIO, Adam served on the Route 9A Project team that rebuilt West Street adjacent to the World Trade Center following September 11, 2001. Adam holds a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Princeton University and a Master’s degree in transportation planning and engineering from the NYU Tandon School of Engineering.
Krzysztof Lukasik
Traffic Engineering Professional at Port Authority of New York and New JerseyKrzysztof has over 9 years of traffic engineering experience at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, including planning, design, safety, construction, and operations, in a wide-range of multi-modal facilities including airports, tunnels, bridges, terminals and port facilities. His previous roles include lead Traffic Engineer on the Newark Airport Terminal A and LaGuardia Airport Redevelopment Programs. He currently works in the Transportation Technologies, Data & Innovation group, which manages the Agency-Wide Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Program. He holds a M.S. from Rutgers University in Transportation Engineering and is a Registered Professional Engineer in the state of New Jersey.
Richard Marquis (Invited)
New York Division Administrator at USDOT/FHWA New YorkRichard (Rick) Marquis has served as the FHWA New York Division Administrator since March 2019, where he exercises executive direction over the $1.8 billion Federal-aid annual apportionment to New York. As Division Administrator, he leads a multidisciplinary staff of over 40 professionals in Albany and New York City to provide guidance to State and local funding recipients with the primary objective of remaining a relevant partner in New York while advancing national transportation goals.
Beginning in 2017, Mr. Marquis had served as a Senior Policy Advisor within the FHWA Office of the Administrator. In this
capacity, Mr. Marquis provided leadership and technical expertise in advising FHWA's senior officials on an array of policy initiatives. Prior to this assignment, Mr. Marquis served as a Division Chief at the USDOT Volpe National Transportation Systems Center within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology in the Office of the Secretary. In this role, Rick led the largest and one of the most complex Volpe Divisions in conducting research and developing solutions to advance national and global transportation systems through the delivery of high-profile projects. Mr. Marquis also previously served as the FHWA Division Administrator, Indiana Division from 2013 until 2016, and has served in other FHWA leadership roles, including Assistant Division Administrator, Massachusetts Division and the Director of Technical Services, Pennsylvania Division. Mr. Marquis joined FHWA in 1996, and, prior to joining FHWA, he worked for three Metropolitan Planning Organizations, including the Boston, MA MPO. Mr. Marquis holds a Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Will Martin (CAV Training Course Instructor)
Electrical and Computer Engineer at LeidosMr. Will Martin is an electrical and computer engineer who is with Leidos. He is currently in graduate school for a Master’s degree in Computer Engineering.
Will has worked at the Saxton Transportation Operations Laboratory as a Research & Development Engineer for the past 2 years and has specialized on testing and commissioning of control systems. Will’s interests mainly lie in wireless communications and transportation, which brought him into this field.
Lou Neudorff
Self-employedLou spent 20 years of his 45-year career (and counting) in the New York City office of JHK and Associates, which later became SAIC and subsequently TransCore. Lou moved to New York City – in terms of having an apartment in the City – in 1991. And not too long after that, ITS-NY was formed. In addition to serving on the ITS-NY Board of Directors for several years, Lou worked on several projects within the Empire State, including the Transcom Regional Architecture, the NY metro area ITS strategic plan, the statewide New York Statewide ITS strategic plan, the design and implementation of the initial freeway traffic management system within New York City, and how can we ever forget the MDI project! During this period, Lou was also the principal investigator and author of a previous version of the Freeway Management and Operations Handbook.
For the last decade, Lou has remained involved with ITS, focusing on Active Traffic Management strategies (e.g., the FHWA “Active Traffic Management Feasibility and Screening Guide) and shoulder lanes. Most of his time, however, has been spent on investigating and implementing system demonstrations for mileage-based road usage charging as a means to provide a more sustainable funding approach for transportation.
Betsy Parmley, P.E.
Director of New York State Department of TransportationElizabeth “Betsy” Parmley, P.E., is the Director of the I-81 Viaduct Project, the largest infrastructure project in New York State Department of Transportation’s history. She began her career with NYSDOT in 2005 as a Junior Engineer and worked her way up to lead NYSDOT’s Central New York Traffic Safety & Mobility Group, before officially joining the I-81 Viaduct Project team as a Project Manager in 2021. Two years later Betsy is now leading the $2.25 billion project.
Oleg V. Pekerman
System Architect at Fortis Consulting Services CorpMr. Oleg V Pekerman has over 28 years of experience working as in the IT/ITS industry as a system architect. He has built a global reputation across the ITS industry as a visionary in TMC operations, ITS maintenance approaches, SMART City concepts and variety of ATMS programs.
During his career, Mr. Pekerman managed multiple multi-million TMCs, TOCs and JTMCs ATMS designs and deployments. Notable projects include the design of the Joint Traffic Management Center for New York City and New York State, and the computerization of New York City's DOT traffic signals and ITS systems using a wireless network to 14,000 signalized intersections, Smart City Assets Management system with over two million devices.
He has participated on the Regional, National and International level in ITS architecture, Connected Vehicle, Incident and Emergency Management committees; currently serving on a board of directors of International Road Federation (IRF); recipient of the over dozen industry awards, including GRAA award in Dubai 2021 and ITS NY awards.
He has a BS in Electrical Engineering from ASTU, BS in Information Technology from Touro University, and an MS in International Business and Finance and MBA from Touro University Graduate School of Business.
Jeff Randall, P.E., PTOE (Moderator)
Senior Vice President and Sr. ITS Manager at WSPJeff is a Senior Vice President and Sr. ITS Manager with WSP USA, and a Past President and Hall of Fame Member of ITS-NY. In his role with WSP, he is responsible for project development and delivery of ITS planning, design, and integration business in New York and the northeast. He is an accomplished manager with more than 40 years of domestic and international experience in traffic/transportation engineering and ITS, both in the public and private sectors. Jeff is a licensed Professional Engineer in New York and six other states and a Professional Traffic Operations Engineer. He earned his BSCE in Civil Engineering from The Pennsylvania State University.
Sergio Reis
CBD Project Manager at MTA Bridges and TunnelsAssistant Vice President of tolling technology and CBD Project Manager for MTA Bridges and Tunnels with over 20 years of experience in tolling.
Edwin G. Roberts
Retired at New York State Department of TransportationEd worked for the NYS Department of Transportation for over 37 years in a variety of traffic operations capacities including most recently as the statewide Director of the Intelligent Transportation Systems Bureau. The Bureau’s responsibilities include management of statewide programs aimed at deploying ITS to address traffic management, safety and traveler information needs.
He retired from the Department in 2010 and subsequently worked until 2018 for a number of transportation consulting firms including VHB, Telvent, Schneider Electric and Kapsch. In that capacity he provided ITS and Traffic Operations expertise and support to public agencies, in particular in the areas of Integrated Corridor Management, Incident Management and ITS performance measures.
He received a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the State University of NY at Buffalo in 1973 and was a registered professional engineer.
Raymund Royandoyan
Senior Manager, System Engineering at TransCoreMr. Royandoyan is a Senior Manager of System Engineering at TransCore. Raymund has been working for TransCore at their New York City office for his entire 35 year career in the transportation industry. The very first project he was involved in was the New York City Vehicular Traffic Control System (VTCS) when he joined back then JHK & Associates. Since then, he has been involved in all aspects of ITS projects which include design, construction, integration, and Operations and maintenance. Raymund has managed several Design/Build projects over the years including New Hampshire DOT I-95 ITS Design/Build and Gettysburg National Park ITS. In 2014, Raymund was assigned to open TransCore’s Saudi Arabia operation and manage its Riyadh Advanced Traffic Control System program. Raymund lived in Riyadh from 2014 until the onset of the pandemic in 2020. Raymund continues to manage the Riyadh program which includes the implementation in TransSuite of a Centralized Transit Signal Priority – the first TSP deployment in Saudi Arabia. Raymund earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering in the Philippines.
Mohamad Talas, Ph.D., P.E., PTOE (Moderator)
New York City Department of Transportation
Sue Thomas, P.E., PMP
Vice President at ITS-NYSue Thomas, PE, is the Vice President of KLD Engineering, P.C. She has 20 years of Traffic Engineering experience from projects including traffic simulation modeling, emergency planning, signal retiming, and adaptive control. She is a NYS Licensed Professional Engineer and has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Bath, UK, and a MS in Energy Studies from the University of Sussex, UK.
Andrew Tracy
Senior Transportation Engineer at Capital District Transportation CommitteeAndrew Tracy is a Senior Transportation Engineer at the Capital District Transportation Committee, the Metropolitan Planning Organization for New York’s Capital Region. Andrew has 11 years of experience in metropolitan transportation planning. He earned his Master’s in Civil Engineering from the State University of New York at Buffalo and worked at a New Jersey MPO for eight years prior to joining CDTC in 2019. In his position at CDTC, Andrew leads efforts relating to operations and infrastructure planning.
Ralph Volpe
Transportation Systems Operations Specialist at USDOT/FHWA Resource CenterRalph Volpe is a Transportation Systems Operations Specialist for the FHWA Resource Center, Operations Technical Service Team. Ralph is responsible for providing technical assistance, training, and deploying strategies and techniques to FHWA internal and external customers. Areas Ralph regularly supports include transportation systems management and operations, integrated corridor management, active transportation and demand management, operations performance management, and organizing/planning for operations, to name a few. Ralph is also the co-lead for the Every Day Counts innovation: “Advancing Crowdsourcing for Operations.” Additionally, Ralph holds multi-discipline Federal-aid experience in both the Tennessee and Georgia Division Offices and FHWA Headquarters. Prior to joining FHWA in 2001, Ralph was a specialist in planning and public transportation for the Tennessee Department of Transportation. Besides his federal and state service, Ralph was a senior transportation planner and program manager with a metropolitan planning organization in Louisville, KY and as a transportation engineer with a regional architecture/engineering firm in Nashville, TN. Volpe holds a BS and MS degree in Logistics and Civil Engineering, respectively, from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.