DOT Launches New Advisory Committee to Help Shape Federal Approach to Transportation Innovation

Advisory committee includes experts and advocates from local government, industry, labor unions and academia

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced the launch of the Transforming Transportation Advisory Committee (TTAC) to provide advice to DOT and the Secretary of Transportation about plans and approaches for transportation innovation. Advisory committee members were selected for their ability to provide diverse perspectives across sectors, geographies, and areas of expertise. The 27 TTAC members include experts from academia, think tanks, the public sector, labor, and industry covering topics including automation, cybersecurity, safety, accessibility, law, government, entrepreneurship, privacy, equity, and more.

“We are living in a time filled with unprecedented opportunity and unprecedented challenges in transportation,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The deep expertise and diverse perspectives of this impressive group will provide advice to ensure the future of transportation is safe, efficient, sustainable, equitable, and transformative.”

TTAC members will serve 2-year terms and may be reappointed. DOT strived to select individuals with in-depth knowledge of their respective industries or sectors and worked to achieve the most diverse and comprehensive points of view.  Membership is an unpaid position.

The first TTAC meeting will be held on January 18. The Committee will explore and consider issues related to:

• Pathways to safe, secure, equitable, environmentally friendly and accessible deployments of emerging technologies
• Integrated approaches to promote greater cross-modal integration of emerging technologies, in particular applications to deploy automation
• Policies that encourage innovation to grow and support a safe and productive U.S. workforce, as well as foster economic competitiveness and job quality
• Approaches and frameworks that encourage the secure exchange and sharing of transformative transportation data, including technologies and infrastructure, across the public and private sectors that can guide core policy decisions across DOT’s strategic goals
• Ways the Department can identify and elevate cybersecurity solutions and protect privacy across transportation systems and infrastructure
• Other emerging issues, topics, and technologies

TTAC members include:

• Nat Beuse – Vice President of Safety, Aurora
• John Bozzella – President and CEO, Alliance for Automotive Innovation
• Jim Burg – President and CEO, James Burg Trucking Company
• Laura Chace – President and CEO, ITS America
• Mark Chung – Executive Vice President of Roadway Practice, National Safety Council
• Matthew Colvin – Chief of Staff of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO
• Steve Dellenback – Vice President of Intelligent Systems, Southwest Research Institute
• Thomas Dwiggins – Chief Fire Officer, Chandler Fire Department
• Carol Flannagan – Research Professor and Director of the Center for the Management of Information for Safe and Sustainable Transportation, University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute
• Shelley Francis – Co-founder & Managing Partner, EV Noire
• Kelly Funkhouser – Associate Director of Vehicle Technology, Consumer Reports
• Mayor Kate Gallego – Mayor, City of Phoenix, AZ
• Kim Lucas – Director of Mobility and Infrastructure, City of Pittsburgh
• Tekedra Mawakana – Co-Chief Executive Officer, Waymo 
• Swati Mylavarapu – Co-Founder, Incite
• Raj Rajkumar – Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Carnegie-Mellon University
• Bryan Reimer – Research Scientist, Center for Transportation and Logistics/AgeLab at MIT
• Catherine Ross – Harry West Professor of City and Regional Planning, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Cole Scandaglia – Senior Legislative Representative and Policy Advisor, International Brotherhood of Teamsters
• Steve Shladover – Research Engineer, University of California Berkeley
• Bryant Walker Smith – Associate Professor, University of South Carolina School of Law
• Bernard Soriano – Deputy Director, California DMV
• Amie Stepanovich – VP of U.S. Policy, Future of Privacy Forum
• Jeffrey Tumlin – Director of Transportation, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency
• Carol Tyson – Government Affairs Liaison, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund
• Eileen Vélez-Vega – Secretary, Puerto Rico Department of Public Works and Transportation
• Maria Trinidad (“Triny”) Willerton – President and Founder, It Could Be Me