PTI

Houston, February 19

Renowned Indian-American engineer Sanjay Ramabhadran has been named the next chairman of the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, becoming the first from the community to head the main public transportation agency in the US state of Texas.

Rambhadran, 51, a chartered engineer and a graduate of BITS-Pilani and later Texas A&M University, has served on METRO’s board of directors since 2015 and is currently chairman of the strategic planning and capital committee, member of the finance committee and auditing. .

He was selected Thursday by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner as the next president of Houston METRO.

The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County is a major public transportation agency based in Houston, Texas, United States. It operates buses, light rail, bus rapid transit, high occupancy vehicle lanes, and high occupancy toll lanes, as well as paratransit service in the city as well as most of of Harris County.

Rambhadran, who is also a longtime community leader, former President of the Indo-American Chamber of Greater Houston (IACCGH), if elevated, would be METRO’s first Indo-American President and replace Patman, the first woman to the head of the council, who resigned after her appointment by the Biden administration as ambassador to Iceland.

Mayor Turner said he hopes his nomination both shows the need for greater diversity.

The METRO transportation agency, with an annual budget of $1.3 billion, 4,100 employees and a 1,300 square mile service area containing 3.9 million people, had black and Latino chairs, as well as many white men.

“Everyone should have a seat at the table,” Turner said.

To take effect, METRO board members will vote to make Ramabhadran the president, where the city holds the majority of seats. Turner would then appoint a new board member.

Turner said, “Ramabhadran, knows how to bring people together and knows how to get things done. There is incredible talent in our city. It gives me hope that whatever challenges we face, we will overcome them if we work together,” said Mayor Turner.

Ramabhadran, helped oversee the planning, design, construction and launch of major projects, including METRONext, which improve mobility across the region.

He also worked on the expansion of MetroRapid, the agency’s bus rapid transit (BRT) service.

He is working to improve travel time, reliability and access to 17 of METRO’s high-traffic bus lines as part of the BOOST initiative.

“As a prepared and proven leader, Ramabhadran is poised to lead Texas’ largest metropolitan transportation authority,” Mayor Turner said.

“His leadership will play an important role in the success of the ambitious METRONext and other projects.”

Ramabhadran’s elevation was also praised by the Indo-American community.

Jagdip Ahluwalia, Founding Secretary/Executive Director of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH), said, “We are proud of Ramabhadran who was our first volunteer when IACCGH was established in 1999 and who has risen to serve on the Board of Directors and lead as Speaker of the House and continues to serve on its Board of Directors”.

“Ramabhadran is a role model for the Indo-American community and a proven leader who will undoubtedly do great things in his new leadership role,” Tarush Anand IACCGH Chairman said.