rsvp@citylive.org
Steve Bland is the CEO of the Port Authority of Allegheny County, and is responsible for overseeing the planning and operation of all bus, light rail, incline and paratransit operations.
A 21-year transit professional, Steve previously served as Executive Director of the Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) in Albany, NY; Executive Director of rabbittransit in York, Pa; and managed transit operations in Syracuse, NY, Gloucester, Mass., and Dallas, Texas. Under his leadership, he has striven towards significant improvements in maintenance and ridership. At CDTA alone he achieved a one-year ridership gain of 11 percent.
Steve is a strong advocate for accessible and affordable public transportation for persons with disabilities. He holds degrees in public affairs, in transportation planning and management, and in public finance.
Rep. Chelsa Wagner was elected to her first term in the Pennsylvania State House in 2006, becoming one of the two women to be elected for the first time for a full term in the State House from the City of Pittsburgh. Approximately two-thirds of Rep. Wagner’s district is in the City of Pittsburgh, with the other one-third spanning suburban communities to the city’s south.
In the House, Rep. Wagner’s committee assignments include Transportation, Judiciary, Education and Commerce. She also concentrates much of her policy work and advocacy in the areas of urban renewal and community development.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Chicago, and is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh Law School.
Sanjeev Shah is a Principal and Regional Director with Lea+Elliott, Inc. based in Miami, Fla. He leads transportation projects specializing in the feasibility, planning, and engineering of projects including Automated People Mover (APM) systems and rail. He has been involved in transit projects in cities including Miami, San Francisco, Phoenix, Dubai and Dublin.
A past president of the National Council of Structural Engineers Association and a past chair of the Structural Engineering Certification Board, Sanjeev is a registered engineer in multiple U.S. jurisdictions including Pennsylvania, Florida, New York and New Jersey. Sanjeev has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Miami, and a master of science in engineering from The University of Texas at Austin.
Chip Walter is an author, future trends consultant, filmmaker and former CNN bureau chief. He has published three mainstream science books:
Thumbs, Toes and Tears – And Other Traits That Make Us Human; I’m Working on That (written with William Shatner); and
Space Age for Random House. He is now working on his fourth book about the ways primal drives shape nearly everything we feel, think and do.
Chip is senior manager in charge of strategic educational initiatives at the Institute for Green Science (Mellon Institute) where he is also author-in-residence. He is also an adjunct professor at both Carnegie Mellon’s professional writing program and the university’s Entertainment Technology Center.
His books have been published in four languages and he has written for The Ecoomist, Scientific American, Discover magazine, the Boston Globe and, of course, Pop City.