Ron Roberts to Receive Distinguished Service Award from American Public Transportation Association

The Metropolitan Transit System Board of Directors announced that San Diego County Supervisor Ron Roberts will receive the American Public Transportation Association’s 2018 Distinguished Service Award at its annual meeting in Nashville, Tenn. from Sept. 23 – 26. The award is annually given to an individual who has made significant contributions at the local level to public transportation through policy, legislative initiative, and leadership. 

“Ron Roberts has served on the MTS Board for more than 30 years,” said MTS Board Chair Georgette Gómez. “We thank him for his leadership.” 

“San Diego’s transit infrastructure will benefit from his vision and fortitude for generations,” added Paul Jablonski, MTS chief executive officer. “There may be no one person who has done more in San Diego to turn a car-centric region into the multi-modal thriving metropolitan region that now serves 100 million transit passengers per year.”

Due to term limits, Supervisor Roberts’ run as an MTS board member comes to a close at the end of 2018 after more than 30 years of service. Supervisor Roberts led the renaissance of public transportation in San Diego from almost all fronts - first as a San Diego city councilmember and then as a County supervisor. In addition to the MTS board, Supervisor Roberts has tirelessly been a voice on the boards of SANDAG (the regional MPO) - including two years as its chairman, the California Air Resources Board, the San Diego Air Pollution Control District (both for 23 years), and many more.

APTA judges considered numerous projects and initiatives Supervisor Roberts worked on including:

Mid-Coast Trolley Extension – This 11-mile, $2.1 billion light rail extension now under construction would not have happened without Supervisor Roberts’ persistence and persuasion. He played an important role to secure a full-funding grant agreement for $1 billion from the Federal Transit Administration in October 2016.

Launch of Rapid BRT – MTS’ first Bus Rapid Transit lines launched in 2014. Supervisor Roberts played an important role to ensure Rapid was included in the TransNet early action program and that funding was prioritized. He worked to secure stakeholder support in key areas where NIMBYism challenged the viability of dedicated bus lanes through Rapid’s core segments. Rapid has been widely popular with riders and has some of the highest ridership in the MTS system.

Investment in Green Technology - As a 23-year member of both the California Air Resources Board and the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District, Supervisor Roberts was able to marry his passion for transit and a clean environment to help MTS develop one of the cleanest fleets in the country. At every turn, he encouraged MTS to be a testing ground for new and innovative ways to reduce emissions. His vision has poured down the ranks of MTS and is worn as a badge of honor for many.

Green Line Mission Valley East Extension – The six-mile extension of the Trolley’s Green Line opened in 2005 and was needed to serve San Diego State University’s 30,000+ enrollment and communities northeast of downtown. The $500 million investment to grow MTS’ infrastructure needed many strong, influential transit advocates.

Trolley Line Naming Rights Agreements - One of the ways transit agencies can help stabilize finances is through long-term naming rights agreements on system assets. Not only did Supervisor Roberts help gain approval for the agreements with his Board colleagues and the MTS executive committee, he helped lock in the agreements through calls of support and encouragement during the midnight hours of negotiations. As a result, MTS was able to execute a Blue Line naming rights agreement with UC San Diego for 30 years at $36 million, and another one for the Green Line with Sycuan Casino for 30 years at $25.5 million.