New York transit community honors FTA's Dorn

U.S. Federal Transit Administrator Jennifer L. Dorn was presented last week with the New York Transit Museum's "Outstanding Commitment to Transit in New York" award, given for major contributions to public transportation. "Jenna Dorn is one of the most outstanding advocates ever for the transit industry, and she's been a particularly good friend to New York," said Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Peter S. Kalikow, who presented the award. "After only a few months in office, two weeks after the tragedy of 9/11, Jenna donned a hardhat and joined us as we assessed the horrific damage," he said. Every option for rebuilding lower Manhattan and revitalizing the economy of New York City includes a strong public transit component. The FTA has established the Lower Manhattan Recovery Office to efficiently and expeditiously process the release of Federal funds for recovery projects. Additionally, Dorn has used the successful evacuation of the transit stations below the World Trande Center as a benchmark and has launched a series of forums, "Connecting Communities: Emergency Preparedness and Security Forums", across the country. Forum goals are to build, enhance, and strengthen a community's first response plan, and demonstrate the important role that transit plays in emergency situations.