She joins the agency after coming out on top of an extensive, nationwide search following CEO Scott Smith’s retirement announcement in summer 2021.
by Staff
March 18, 2022
2 min to read
Jessica Mefford-Miller most recently served as executive director for Metro Transit where she led a team that delivered bus, light rail, paratransit, and microtransit across the St. Louis metropolitan region.
Credit:
Valley Metro
Phoenix’s Valley Metro named Jessica Mefford-Miller as its new CEO. Mefford-Miller joins Valley Metro with 15 years of experience connecting people and places through transit in the St. Louis region. She joins the agency after coming out on top of an extensive, nationwide search following CEO Scott Smith’s retirement announcement in summer 2021.
“Jessica offers extensive transit experience with a strong dedication to the customer experience, innovation and collaborative partnerships,” said Valley Metro Board Chair and Mesa Councilmember Francisco Heredia. “She also clearly demonstrated an ingenuity to lead through change and create positive outcomes for the good of the organization, employees, and riders. Her energy certainly matched ours as we consider the future of Valley Metro and its important role coming out of the pandemic and into an era where we continue to experience such incredible growth as a region.”
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Mefford-Miller most recently served as executive director for Metro Transit where she led a team that delivered bus, light rail, paratransit, and microtransit across the St. Louis metropolitan region. Throughout her career she has focused on social equity, environmental sustainability, delivering excellent customer experiences and contributing to thriving regional economies.
“I am excited to join the team at Valley Metro at a time of tremendous growth and innovation within the metro Phoenix region, where transit is at the forefront as an essential public service,” said Mefford-Miller. “I look forward to working with the boards, member agencies, and staff to provide excellent transit service that delivers value to our communities and continuing realization of Valley Metro’s bold capital vision.”
Mefford-Miller’s career is highlighted by many milestones, including leading Metro Transit through a reimaging of its bus system, which improved frequencies systemwide; creating a shift toward renewable energy through its battery electric bus program; overseeing the planning and design of expansions to their current 46-mile light rail line; and leveraging the region’s rail investment to create thriving transit-oriented development.
Before Metro Transit, Mefford-Miller held posts at the National Park Service, the Ohio Department of Transportation, and The Ohio State University.
The region’s fixed-route system finished out the year with a total of 373.5 million rides. Adding 12.3 million rides over 2024 represents an increase that is equal to the annual transit ridership of Kansas City.
The service is a flexible, reservation-based transit service designed to close the first- and last-mile gaps and connect riders to employment for just $5 per day.
The upgraded system, which went live earlier this month, supports METRO’s METRONow vision to enhance the customer experience, improve service reliability, and strengthen long-term regional mobility.
The agreement provides competitive wages and reflects strong labor-management collaboration, positive working relationships, and a shared commitment to building a world-class transit system for the community, said RTA CEO Lona Edwards Hankins.
The priorities are outlined in the 2026 Board and CEO Initiatives and Action Plan, which serves as a roadmap to guide the agency’s work throughout the year and ensure continued progress and accountability on voter-approved transportation investments and essential mobility services.
