Photo by didbygraham on Flickr.

This morning, the WMATA Board made their appointments to the Riders’ Advisory Council. You can listen to the recording here; the RAC appointment resolution comes up at 10:45, or start at 9:15 to hear Michael A. Brown’s entertaining swearing-in.

Resolved, that the Board of Directors hereby reappoints Patricia Daniels and Kenneth DeGraff, and appoints David Alpert to represent the District of Columbia, and

Resolved, that the Board of Directors hereby reappoints Sharon Conn and appoints Francis DeBernardo and Laura Routt to represent the State of Maryland, and

Resolved, that the Board of Directors hereby reappoints Penelope Everline to represent the Commonwealth of Virginia, and

Resolved, that the Board of Directors hereby appoints Dharm Guruswamy and Carl Seip as at-large representatives without regard to jurisdiction.

Yup, that’d be me. As your new representative on the Riders’ Advisory Council, I hope to ensure the RAC communicates with riders. Right now, there’s very little information on the RAC page. It doesn’t say how to get in touch with the RAC or even who is on the board. Some have charged that the RAC currently serves as more of a “glorified focus group”, where Metro staff bounce ideas off a group of riders, rather than facilitating a conversation with as many riders as possible.

I will post about upcoming RAC meetings, and encourage all of you to weigh in on whatever issues they’ll be discussing (or any other issues they ought to discuss), then present your opinions along with mine. I’ll also do my best to keep you informed about any important information Metro staff presents to the RAC and the RAC’s opinions.

Tagged: rac, transit, wmata

David Alpert created Greater Greater Washington in 2008 and was its executive director until 2020. He formerly worked in tech and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco Bay, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He lives with his wife and two children in Dupont Circle.