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Posted: 10/1/2009

An employee of VIA Metropolitan Transit has been selected to take part in a program to study transit systems abroad and to bring the knowledge back home.

Manager of Bus Service Transportation Michael Ledesma was chosen to participate in the International Transit Studies Program for the fall of 2009. This study mission will take Ledesma and 14 other people from the transit industry to South America from November 1 through November 13. The team of transit leaders will study how increasing ridership demand has been dealt with in the cities of Guayaquil, Ecuador; Santiago, Chile; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Ledesma, who first joined VIA in 1986, was selected from a national pool of applicants. He and his fellow team members were chosen based on their demonstrated leadership capabilities, and they are expected to submit written reports on their experiences when they return from their mission.

“It is a privilege to be selected for this study mission,” Ledesma said. “I am excited to have this opportunity, and anything I can learn abroad will add to the efficient and effective operations we already have at VIA.”

The International Transit Studies Program, or ITSP, is run by the Transit Cooperative Research Program, which is managed by the Transportation Research Board and sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration. All travel expenses associated with the study mission in November will be covered by the ITSP. More information on this program can be found by visiting the ITSP website.