Click the inductee’s name to learn more about them.
Paul Jablonski (2020)
P.S. (Red) Jenison (1987)
Frederick J. Johnson (1983)
Robert B. Johnston (1984)
Charles E. Keiser (1990)
Joseph C. Kelly (1993)
Alan F. Kiepper (2003)
Robert S. Korach (1995)
Tony Kouneski (2019)
George Krambles (1995)
Celia Kupersmith (2020)
Lucien L’Allier (1986)
James L. Lammie (2002)
Jack Leary (2018)
Frank Lichtanski (2008)
Anthony R. (Tony) Lucchesi (1987)
Colonel William R. (Bill) Lucius (1994)
William A. Luke (1998)
Paul Jablonski
Through a career that spanned more than 40 years in the public transportation industry, Paul Jablonski was a champion for transit. His influence and expertise was felt at transit agencies across the east coast, the Midwest, the west coast and overseas. He nurtured new transit systems, turned broken systems into winners, and was committed to learning and sharing knowledge to help others succeed. Jablonski was deeply involved in APTA, serving as an at-large director on the APTA Board of Directors, co-chair for the Public Transportation CEO Coordinating Council Leadership and was a member of an additional 14 committees. Under his leadership, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System won APTA’s Most Outstanding Transit Agency of the Year award in 2009. In 2014, APTA honored him as Outstanding Transportation Manager of the Year.
P.S. “Red” Jenison
Founder of the American Transit Association’s Schedule Committee, who served Kansas City transit for 44 years.
Frederick J. Johnson
An innovative transit executive who served as president of the American Transit Association and ran transit systems in Louisville and Milwaukee.
Robert B. Johnston
A 28-year transit professional who believed in the strong link between improved public transportation and quality of life in U.S. cities.
Charles E. Keiser
A respected Chicago Transit Authority operating manager, who also served as a technical advisor to major transit projects.
Joseph C. Kelly
A good-humored transit visionary who helped craft and shape the federal transit program while restoring the Boston transit system.
Alan F. Kiepper
He left a lasting imprint on New York City as president of MTA New York City Transit; Atlanta, where he led the construction and operation of the MARTA rail system; and Houston, where he helped bring the agency to the top of industry ranks.
Robert S. Korach
A pioneer in modern rapid transit, whose “lean and mean” management style in Cleveland served transit well for over 40 years.
Tony Kouneski
Tony Kouneski has been a trailblazer throughout his 45-year public transportation career. Many progressive marketing, service delivery, safety and staff development programs can be attributed to his leadership.
For 12 years Tony was a potent force in the delivery of APTA member services. When a GM encountered an unfamiliar situation, Tony was the person’s first call. He fostered Leadership APTA, CEO committees, international missions, peer review efforts, technical papers, operating and equipment standards and the Safety Audit program. His leadership made APTA’s conferences and the EXPO more dynamic and relevant.
Tony has long championed the promotion of minorities and women, as recognized with APTA’s Minority Development Award and the Women in Transit Committee’s Advancement of Women in Management Award.
George Krambles
A transit professional with a deep understanding of the industry, who headed the Chicago Transit Authority and founded a scholarship fund.
Celia Kupersmith
For 34 years, Celia Kupersmith has been a major force in the growth and development of the public transit industry. To this day, multiple systems and riders alike benefit from her efforts to foster ethical leadership, improve service quality, enhance multimodal coordination, and elevate transit as a key network component. In predominantly multi-modal settings, she has served as a planner; marketing director; MPO chief; bus, rail, and ferry manager; general manager; and executive recruiting consultant. She has been very active in APTA throughout her long career. While working at the RTC in Reno, NV, she served as vice chair of APTA’s Small Operations Committee and, later, as vice chair of the Human Resources Committee within APTA’s Executive Committee. In that role, she led the effort to develop operational mechanics for Leadership APTA, ultimately serving for years as chair of that program. She remains involved as a member of the Human Resources Committee to this day.
Lucien L’Allier
A past president of the Canadian and American public transit associations, who directed the construction of the Montreal Metro.
James L. Lammie
A dedicated engineer who, during his 25-year career, led Parsons Brinckerhoff and guided the development of many of the nation’s highest-profile rail-transit infrastructure projects.
Jack Leary
Leary started his 48-year public transit career in 1966 as a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) streetcar operator, while pursuing a business degree at Northeastern University. He gradually took on significant new responsibilities, eventually being promoted to the position of Deputy General Manager of Operations at the MBTA with complete responsibility for all operating, maintenance, engineering and support departments. Major improvements were made to key performance indicators, ridership and customer service.
In 1990, Leary became the Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Bi State Development Agency (BSDA). He led the organization’s pursuit of transportation and development projects in both the states of Missouri and Illinois. Other testaments to his Leary’s leadership, included the recognition of BSDA when it won the APTA Public Transportation Innovation Award in 1994, the Minority and Women Advancement Award in 1996 .and Outstanding Public Transportation System Achievement Award in 1997.
Making a difference didn’t end when he left public service. Leary continued to contribute to the industry, as he founded a transportation consulting firm and was a principal in KL Executive Search.
Frank Lichtanski
Frank Lichtanski dedicated his professional life to the continued growth and improvement of public transportation in California and on the national level. He served as general manager/CEO of Monterey-Peninsula Transit for 23 years and also played an important role in the formation of the California Transit Insurance Pool. Public transit education was one of his top priorities.
Anthony R. (Tony) Lucchesi
Established a preventive maintenance program at AC Transit in Oakland that became a standard for the transit industry nationwide.
Colonel William R. (Bill) Lucius
A charter member of Oakland’s Metropolitan Transportation Commission, concentrating on rural transit needs and the disadvantaged.
William A. Luke
The well-traveled editor and publisher of Bus Ride magazine, who reported on international transit perspectives before they became popular topics.
