Click the inductee’s name to learn more about them.
Kenneth S. Voigt (1994)
William L. Volk (2016)
Phillip A. Washington (2023)
H. Donald White (1992)
Richard A. White (2019)
Harvel W. Williams (1997)
Harold B. Williams (2018)
Alan C. Wulkan (2016)
Kenneth S. Voigt
A professional described as “APTA’s fiscal conscience,” who guided the association through 20 years as chief financial officer.
William L. Volk
Bill Volk’s 44 years of dedication and service to the public transportation industry has had a significant impact on public transportation on the local and national levels. Under his leadership, MTD twice received APTA’s Outstanding Achievement Award. He served as APTA vice president-marketing, where he established funding in the APTA budget for marketing public transit, he received the 1991 Jesse Haugh Award. Bill was a longtime elected member of the APTA Small Operations Committee and also served on the APTA Executive Committee as vice chair-small operations and as chair of the APTA Legislative Committee.
H. Donald White
A hands-on transit manager for over 40 years who oversaw the evolution of transit from the private to the public sector in northern California.
Richard A. White
With 45 years of experience, Richard A. White has a unique place in the public transportation industry as one of the very few individuals who has worked in all four sectors of the industry: the federal government (U.S.DOT/FTA), public transportation operating agencies, business member/ industry organizations that serve public transit clients and at the national level, as acting president & CEO of APTA.
His 32 years of public sector experience include more than 16 years in public transit agency executive management, specifically as chief executive officer of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District and other senior management roles at New Jersey Transit Corporation and the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (Houston METRO). At the time of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, he was CEO of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, where he ensured the system remained open and moved hundreds of thousands of people throughout the National Capital Region during a time of great fear and anxiety.
Dick’s career is a testament to public service, integrity, hard work and passionate belief in advancing the public transportation industry.
Harvel W. Williams
A transit manager for over 43 years and APTA secretary-treasurer, who dedicated himself to community service, integrity, and the industry.
Harold B. Williams
Reverend Jerry Moore and Harold B. Williams founded the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) to provide a forum for minority professionals in the transportation industry.
Williams was a former FTA associate administrator and longtime director of civil rights for FTA’s predecessor organization, UMTA. He was also deputy commissioner of equal educational opportunity in the U.S. Department of Education. At U.S. DOT, under both Democratic and Republican presidents, Williams helped develop far-reaching regulations for equal opportunity in public transportation, including Title Vl., and equal access to service. He also created diversity and inclusion regulations regarding workforce and the use of small, minority, and woman-owned businesses in all federally funded or assisted public transportation. Following his retirement from DOT, he was a consultant to public transit agencies and on issues of equal opportunity.
Alan C. Wulkan
Alan Wulkan has more than 43 years of public transportation experience, with a unique combination of experience including CEO of his own firm, a partner in a small consulting firm, senior vice president in one of the largest engineering firms in the world, and CEO of a public transit agency. Alan was a founding member of the Center for Transportation Excellence, taking his local experience in helping more than 10 communities pass public transit sales taxes and sharing those successes with others across the nation.
Phillip A. Washington
After an extraordinary active-duty career in the United States Army, Phil Washington retired as a disabled veteran with the rank of Command Sergeant Major, the highest non-commissioned officer rank an enlisted soldier can achieve. His military service included positions as a senior enlisted advisor to scores of senior military officers.
Upon military retirement, Washington joined Denver’s rapidly developing Regional Transportation District (RTD) as assistant general manager and held that position for nearly a decade before he was named chief executive officer. As CEO, he led the implementation of the agency’s multi-billion-dollar FasTracks light and commuter rail program. Under his leadership, RTD completed major additions to its rail system and revitalized the enormous downtown Union Station under budget and ahead of schedule.
Union Station is now the centerpiece of public transportation in Denver. Washington was also instrumental in implementing the nation’s first transit rail public-private partnership (P3) project; the $2.2 billion commuter rail line connecting Union Station and Denver International Airport.
Washington also served as CEO of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro): leading an 11,000-person team serving more than 1.2 million daily riders. There, he oversaw more than $20 billion in capital projects. Underpinning the capital program was Measure M, a perpetual half-cent sales tax passed by Los Angeles County voters. Over time, it is estimated Measure M will create some 750,000 jobs and provide more than $133 billion in economic impact for the region.
Wherever he has served, Washington has leveraged his positions and his organizations’ status to benefit underserved individuals. At LA Metro, Washington led the establishment of the SEED School of Los Angeles County which became the county’s first college-prep boarding school for career readiness in transportation infrastructure. In his current position as CEO of Denver International Airport, the third busiest airport in the world in 2022, he is already well on his way to creating his legacy in aviation.
In recognition of his contributions to the industry and reputation for getting things done, Washington was awarded a Champion of Change Award by the Obama Administration, was named the 2013 APTA Outstanding Public Transportation Manager and was asked to serve as Captain of then-President-elect Joe Biden’s transportation transition team. Phil also is a past chair of APTA and created the nationwide Stand Up 4 Transportation initiative in 2015. President Biden later nominated Washington to head the Federal Aviation Administration.
Whether working at the highest levels of government, or at local levels of public service, Phil Washington has proven to be a public transportation leader dedicated to inclusive, accessible, and environmentally conscious transportation solutions.
