People on the Move: August 2026

BLUFFTON, SC—The Lowcountry Regional Transportation Authority (LRTA) selected Charles Mitchell Jr. to serve as executive director of Palmetto Breeze. Mitchell has been an advocate for public transportation, providing leadership as a member of the LRTA Board of Directors and most recently as board chair. His commitment to connecting people with jobs, healthcare, education, and opportunity has helped shape Palmetto Breeze’s mission across the Lowcountry. The agency looks forward to continuing to serve its riders and communities under his leadership.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA—SilverRide promoted Laura Williams to chief of staff. In this role, she will support enterprise strategy, organizational design, investor communications, and market development across the company’s paratransit, healthcare, and direct-to-consumer service lines. Williams has been with SilverRide since 2022. In her prior role as director of market development, she oversaw development of a credentialed driver pipeline that enabled more than one million rides per year and underpins the company’s 95 percent on-time performance and ADA-compliant assisted transportation services across more than 35 major metro areas.

SilverRide appointed Leah Calixto as its west coast director of paratransit operations. In this role, she will be responsible for service delivery, regulatory and contract compliance, and the development of market leadership. Calixto brings nearly two decades of leadership experience across paratransit and non-emergency medical transportation, including managing operations teams and advancing early autonomous vehicle initiatives. Most recently, Calixto led a consulting firm, advising transportation organizations including Transdev and MV Transportation on paratransit operations.

HOUSTON, TX—Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam (LAN) promoted Shenelle Graves to vice president. Most recently practice leader of LAN’s right of way team, Graves has extensive experience delivering right of way services for transportation, drainage, and water infrastructure projects. Prior to joining LAN, Graves held leadership roles with the Harris County Flood Control District. She maintains Senior Right of Way Professional (SR/WA), Right of Way-Negotiation and Acquisition Certification (R/W-NAC), and Local Government Procurement Professional (LGPP) designations.

FORT WORTH, TX—RATP Dev USA promoted Ibrahima Toure to chief operating officer. In his new role, Toure will oversee operations, maintenance, customer satisfaction, service delivery, and operational performance. He has more than 23 years of experience in the transit industry, including serving as RATP Dev USA’s chief development officer since 2022 and supporting both operational and commercial leadership roles at Transdev North America. He is a member of APTA’s Bus Operations Committee and is a graduate of the Leadership APTA Class of 2013.

Steve Sherrer is taking over as chief development officer, leading RATP Dev USA’s business development, client growth, proposal, pricing, marketing and communications, and commercial strategy functions. Sherrer brings extensive experience in public transportation operations, client service, and organizational leadership. Most recently, he served as the company’s senior vice president of operations and has held leadership positions supporting transit systems and agency partnerships. Sherrer is a member of APTA’s Small Operations Committee.

RIVERSIDE, CA—ENC appointed Robert Cato III as regional sales manager, supporting transit agency and operator accounts across the U.S. southeastern region. A transit veteran and bus systems expert, Cato brings nearly three decades of experience working at the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA). As a mechanical electrical engineer, he wrote technical specifications, managed vendor relationships, and developed tooling and maintenance procedures. Earlier, he worked as a bus maintenance instructor and as a journeyman technician. He completed transit technical training sponsored by MARTA and the U.S. Department of Labor.

CHARLOTTE, NC—Transit Technologies appointed Kristen Shaheen as chief legal officer. In this role she will lead legal functions and oversee human resources and governance, risk, and compliance for the software solutions provider. Throughout her career, Shaheen has built legal teams for several high-growth technology companies. She was also co-founder of a law practice where she worked for 16 years.

ANN ARBOR, MI—May Mobility Inc. appointed Balajee Kannan as senior vice president of autonomy core engineering. In this role, Kannan will help the autonomous vehicle technology company advance its core autonomy capabilities, scale its autonomous vehicle deployments, and execute its commercial ride-hail strategy. Kannan brings more than 25 years of experience in robotics and autonomous systems. Most recently, he served as vice president of autonomy at Motional and has also held senior engineering and leadership roles at Argo AI, Amazon, and GE. He holds multiple robotics patents and previously co-founded a company focused on autonomous maritime systems.

NEW YORK, NY—Hitachi Rail appointed Frank Antonysamy as CEO of Clever Devices as part of Hitachi Rail’s acquisition and integration with Clever Devices. In his new role, Antonysamy will focus on growth and market positioning for Clever Devices. Antonysamy has been involved with Hitachi since 2020. Most recently, he served as chief growth officer at Hitachi Digital, leading the company’s industrial AI portfolio. He has also served on Hitachi Energy’s Board of Directors and as chief digital solutions officer and Executive Committee member of Hitachi Vantara. Before that, he worked at technology service provider Cognizant for 17 years.

NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR—Rock Region METRO appointed Ember Strange as chief financial officer. Strange has two decades of experience in governmental accounting, financial management, and public-sector leadership. Previously she served as chief financial officer for the City of North Little Rock, where her team produced the city’s first Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, which earned the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting. She is a member of the GFOA executive board, serves as the ex-officio of the Committee on Retirement and Benefits Administration, and is past president of the Women’s Public Finance Network and of the Arkansas GFOA.

IRVINE, CA—HDR named Rob Klovsky transit strategic program growth director. In this leadership role, he will help clients move projects from early planning through implementation, working across transit engineering, rail and transit systems, and operations and maintenance facilities. Klovsky brings more than 30 years of experience in rail and transit infrastructure at HDR, including leadership of large-scale, multimodal programs for agencies such as Metrolink, Riverside County Transportation Commission, and Union Pacific. He previously served as president of the Railway Association of Southern California and is a graduate of the Leadership APTA class of 2019.

CHATTANOOGA, TN—Bohr Electronics named Garrett Riley vice president of sales. In the role, Riley will work closely with customers and Bohr’s engineering, manufacturing, and customer support teams to help railroads address operational and technology challenges. Riley brings more than 18 years of experience in sales, operations, and business development. Most recently, he served as regional sales director for locomotives at ZTR. He has also held leadership positions with Beijer Electronics, National Railway Equipment, Westermo Data Communications, and Wabtec.

CHICAGO, IL—Wabtec appointed Rajas Joshi vice president, Business Unit Bus, within Wabtec Transit Power & Mobility Components. In this role, Joshi will lead the business’s continued growth and operational performance, bringing more than 20 years of experience in global manufacturing operations, supply chain management, and business leadership across North America, Europe, and Asia. He has held leadership roles at Andronaco Industries, AR2 LLC, GE Transportation, and Cummins Inc.