Nuria Fernandez, GM/CEO of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award for Transportation Professional and Public Service by the Council of University Transportation Centers (CUTC).

During her 30-plus-year career, Fernandez has served in leadership roles at some of the largest transportation agencies in the U.S.

She was COO for the New York State Metropolitan Transportation Authority, managed the operations of O’Hare International Airport, was sr. VP for Design and Construction at the Chicago Transit Authority and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, and provided high-level policy and program expertise at the U.S. Department of Transportation where she served as deputy administrator of the Federal Transit Administration, under President Clinton.

She is currently Vice Chair of the American Public Transportation Association and recently celebrated her five-year anniversary at the helm of VTA.

San Jose State University’s Mineta Transportation Institute, where Fernandez is on the board of directors, is a member of The Council of University Transportation Centers.

Fernandez received the Lifetime Achievement honor at the CUTC Annual Awards Banquet on Saturday, January 12 in Washington, D.C.