County extends offer to new director of Sarasota County Area Transit

The county has extended a conditional offer of employment to a new director of Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT).

The candidate, Rocky A. Burke, of Lexington, Ky., has more than 15 years of leadership and management experience within the public transit industry. He previously served as the general manager of Lextran in Lexington, where he oversaw a program that included 75 fixed bus routes and 49 contracted para-transit buses, more than 200 employees and an operating budget of $21 million.

Since he began serving in that role in 2008, Burke has helped increase ridership by more than 15 percent, added more passenger amenities and implemented a downtown trolley service and late-night university services in Lexington.

"We are pleased to welcome Rocky to our community," said County Administrator Tom Harmer. "We expect that his years of experience in public transportation will help us improve customer service and continue to grow ridership here in Sarasota County.

Burke is tentatively scheduled to begin employment Dec. 29.

"I'm looking forward to this new job both personally and professionally," Burke said. "My feeling after talking with the leadership of Sarasota County is that we will all be trying to make SCAT the best transit service of its size in the country."

Before his job in Lexington, Burke worked as the fleet services and equipment manager for the city of Austin, Texas, and as director of maintenance and assistant general manager for Austin's public transit authority.

Additionally, he has worked in public transit operations for the municipalities of Jackson, Miss., and Tucson, Ariz. He also held a position as a regional sales manager for Chance Coach Inc., of Wichita, Kan., which provided buses to more than 100 public transit agencies and municipalities in nine states.

Burke is a graduate of the University of Dayton in Ohio, where he earned a Master of Public Administration degree, and of Morehead State University in Kentucky, where he earned a bachelor's degree in health education.

He is also a retired lieutenant colonel of the U.S. Air Force with more than 28 years of service.