While saving money is the primary driver, agency efforts are resulting in providing communities with better, more customer-focused services.

Under the direction of the board of directors, Darrell Johnson is responsible for planning, financing and coordinating Orange County’s freeway, street and rail development, as well as managing bus, commuter rail and paratransit service.

Orange County (Calif.) Transportation Authority’s quiet zone program work included the enhancement of 52 railroad crossings and helped silence train horns for local communities.

What’s new? Not much. Ridership is still high, and funding is still vanishing. Many providers are still looking to technology to cope and some are including new types of vehicles in their fleets. Travel training, which appears to be growing in popularity, may be a partial solution.

With today's technology, routing software is used to create efficient schedules for dozens to hundreds of routes, factoring in numerous variables that include road conditions to union contracts.