ZEBinar: Making the Transition to Zero Emissions

Speakers

Moderator


Richard Skoda
Director Project Development Infrastructure and Place, Transport for NSW (Aus)

Richard Skoda is the Director, Project Development from Transport for New South Wales (TfNSW). He is leading the development of the Zero Emission Buses (ZEB) program in NSW which includes the transition of over 8,000 combustion engine buses and hundreds of diesel depots across NSW to net zero operations.

Working with industry and government, Richard led the creation of the TfNSW Zero Emission Buses Transition Plan which was released in June 2022. The plan outlines a staged transition to zero emission technology considering environmental and financial sustainability, operator readiness, supplier capacity and technology risk. 

In the past year, he has helped secure funding of over $3 billion to commence the journey to zero emission bus operations in the Sydney metropolitan region which includes over 1,200 buses and 12 depots and to trial new bus technology in within Rural and Regional NSW.

Richard is Chair of the Public Transport Association Australia New Zealand (PTAANZ) ZEB RoundTable which is represented by transport agencies across Australia and New Zealand

Panellists


Darek Koper
Group Manager Metro Services, Auckland Transport (NZ)

Darek is leading the public transport, on demand and total mobility service delivery and decarbonisation of Auckland’s public transport bus and ferry fleets and infrastructure specifications to improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He has 15 years of experience in various roles in the transportation industry.

Darek is leading Auckland Transport’s transition to zero-emission bus fleet known as Auckland’s Low Emission Bus Roadmap. Auckland’s Low Emission Bus Roadmap was a finalist for the Low Carbon Future Award at the 2021 New Zealand Energy Excellence Awards and the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Bus trial is a finalist for the Low Carbon Future Award at the 2022 New Zealand Energy Excellence Awards.

Darek collaborates with private bus operators to facilitate greater understanding of the benefits of moving to zero emission fleets and plays a key role in the development of supply chain to support the transition from diesel to electric and hydrogen fuel cell buses and ferries, their management, operations and charging infrastructure. He is also chairing the New Zealand Low Emission Bus Working Group tasked with overcoming chllenges and removing barriers to earlier adoption of zero emission buses in New Zealand.


Huoi Trieu
Special Projects Manager, King County Metro Transit (US)

Huoi Trieu is King County Metro’s Zero Emissions Manager, leading a team to acquire 1400 BEBs and non-bus fleet; invest in charging infrastructure and technology; and transform operations. Huoi is a project management and change management professional with over 15 years of startup and management experience for non-profits, for-profit and govt organizations. Huoi has taken on key roles in Metro’s department re-org, leading Metro’s COVID-19 crisis response, and as the Director for Advanced Service Management.


Jeff Arbuckle
Manager of Project and Construction Management, King Country Metro Transit (US)

Jeff Arbuckle is currently the Manager of the Project and Construction Management Units at King County Metro Transit in Seattle, Washington. In his current role, he is focused on ensuring the successful delivery of a $100 million plus annual capital program include State of Good Repair, Expansion, and Transition To Zero Emissions project. Prior to joining the Capital Delivery team, Jeff spent notable time in Metro’s Capital Planning and Transit Facilities Divisions as a Supervisor and Interim Director. 

Before transitioning to Transit, Jeff spent a decade in service to the Walt Disney Company as a Disney Imagineer engaging in design and construction projects in Tokyo, Hong Kong, And Shanghai, often being one of the first pair of boots on the ground to establish the field office and build a relationship with local staff, contractors, and vendors. Prior to joining Disney, he worked on several other notable themed entertainment projects across the globe.


Lauren Skiver
Chief Operating Officer, Transdev US (US)

Lauren Skiver brings her extensive transit career experience to Transdev U.S. and to her Chief Operating Officer (COO) role where she has operational and fiscal responsibility for the Vehicle Services, Non-Emergency Medical Transport (NEMT) and Rail businesses, along with responsibility for the Maintenance, Safety and Security teams at Transdev. She works closely with Susan Sweat, Transdev Chief Operating Officer over all Transit and Performance.

Lauren has an impressive transit career which started in 1996 as a Maintenance Clerk at Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (HART). Her career progression includes such roles as Director of Paratransit and Customer Service at HART, Director of Mobility Services at Maryland Transit Administration (MTA), Deputy Chief Operating Office of Core Services at MART overseeing all operating modes including light rail, subway and bus, CEO of Delaware Transit Corporation and CEO / General Manager of SunLine Transit Agency in Thousand Palms, California.

Lauren is also a U.S. Army Veteran who specialized in Military Intelligence as an Imagery Analyst and served in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. She currently serves as Chair of Leadership APTA, which focuses on developing visionary and resilient leaders for the transit industry. And, from 2020 to 2023, she was Chair of the California Hydrogen Business Council and helped bring attention nationwide to the benefits of hydrogen fuel cell technology.


Mark Peters
General Manager Fleet, Innovation & Business Intelligence, Transit Systems (Aus)

General Manager Fleet, Innovation & Business Intelligence

Kelsian Group, Transit Systems, Australian Public Transport Division

Mark has been in the bus industry for 34 years and has experience in a number of roles including Automotive Electrician, Workshop Manager, Depot/Operations Manager, Area Manager and General Manager. The Transit Systems Australian Public Transport Division of the Kelsian Group currently operate around 3,000 buses including 60 Battery Electric Buses (55 in Sydney, 4 x in Perth and 1 x in Adelaide. In addition to this, Mark is working with multiple State transport agencies on additional Battery Electric Bus and Hydrogen Fuel Cell Bus projects. His portfolio also includes business intelligence focused on benchmarking business units, as well as ZEB total cost of ownership and various funding models.

To register for this webinar, you will need to create a profile on APTA’s learning platform. This might take a few minutes, then you will be able to register for this webinar.

If you have any questions, please contact events@ptaanz.org.

 

If you do not have an APTA login:

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To learn more about the American Public Transportation Association click here.

To learn more about the Public Transport Association Australia New Zealand click here.