One word to describe yourself: Authentic
Fast fact about yourself: I ride the train in every city I travel to. I rode metros in the U.S., Canada, central America and Europe.
May Elkhattab is passionate about transforming ideas into realities that enhance lives. She enjoys working in an industry where her efforts result in improvements to safety, connectivity, accessibility and while fostering sustainable economic and social growth in communities.
Her interest in engineering began in personal tragedy. As a teen in Lebanon, Elkhattab’s older brother was left with a severe brain injury following a car accident that was caused by poor transportation planning. The accident motivated Elkhattab to pursue engineering and dedicate her professional and personal efforts to improving infrastructure in vulnerable communities.
As a project manager at Burns Engineering in Washington, D.C., Elkhattab leads high-visibility rail and transit projects on the East Coast. For the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Yellow Line Tunnel and Bridge Rehabilitation Project, she served as the design project manager, upgrading critical life-safety systems and increasing the life cycle of the metro system. At the WMATA Potomac Yard Metrorail Station, she managed the design approval for more than 1,000 sheets of complex technologies, enhancing train safety, communication bandwidth and supervisory control systems.
As assistant project manager for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Green Line Extension Project, she helped bring the project back to budget and oversaw contract documents, bid evaluation and technical reviews.
Elkhattab is also involved in supporting professional associations, including as the vice president of the Engineers Without Borders New York Professional Chapter, the Women’s Transportation Seminar, DC Chapter, the Design Build Institute, MAR Chapter and the Deep Foundation Institute, where she has served on several committees and was a founding member of the Women in Deep Foundation Committee.
Is there a specific experience that led you to where you are today?
As a teenager in the country of Lebanon, I became interested in the ways that engineering can transform communities. My older brother was in a car accident that put him in a coma and left him with a severe brain injury. The accident was due to poor transportation planning and execution so I promised myself that I would become an engineer to implement safe public transportation. Since then, I have devoted both my professional and personal life to effecting change in vulnerable communities, where safe, reliable infrastructure can be life saving.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
Working with some of the smartest and most innovative people in the industry.
Accomplishment you’re most proud of and why?
I am most proud of my accomplishments with Engineers Without Borders. I was part of the team for the Maize Processing Plant project in Rubaya, Rwanda, where a new designed and constructed building helps elevate the community’s existing small-scale agricultural practices into a sustainable, self-sufficient thriving local industry. I was also the project lead for a Water and Sanitation and Hygiene project in Chiche, Guatemala. This project provided water access to 750 people and 140 households through the design and construction of 13 miles of water conduction line and 16 miles of distribution network to 750 people in 140 households.
Best advice/tip/best practice to share from your area of expertise?
Stay Resilient and confident. The industry can be challenging. Stay confident in your abilities, be assertive and advocate for yourself and those who need it.
Mischa Wanek-Libman | Group Editorial Director
Mischa Wanek-Libman is director of communications with Transdev North America. She has more than 20 years of experience working in the transportation industry covering construction projects, engineering challenges, transit and rail operations and best practices.
Wanek-Libman has held top editorial positions at freight rail and public transportation business-to-business publications including as editor-in-chief and editorial director of Mass Transit from 2018-2024. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content.
She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and served 14 years as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.
She is a graduate of Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication.
