- One word to describe yourself: Resourceful
- Alma Mater: Glenwood City High School, University of Wisconsin–Green Bay, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
- Favorite book: "Steve Jobs" by Walter Isaacson
- Favorite TV show: Almost any Netflix series, including "House of Cards" and "Stranger Things"
- Favorite movie: "Lion"
- Favorite hobby(ies): Biking and gardening with his wife
- Fun fact: He studied populations of U.S. cities and played NCAA Division 1 college basketball.
- What is your favorite transit system (outside of the one you work for or have worked for!) and why?: Portland — the city, TriMet, streetcar — collectively has a great transit system with pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, streetcar, bus, light rail all within a metro area with a population under 2.5 million.
Since joining HNTB in 2007, Ashley Booth has set himself apart by becoming a go-to thought leader and trusted adviser for some of the firm’s most important clients. As national streetcar practice leader and planning and technical services director, he leads a group of nearly 30 employees who support transit and other infrastructure projects nationwide. Before that, he served as one of the youngest sales managers in the firm’s history, working out of HNTB’s Milwaukee, Wisconsin, office, and helping the office achieve record sales for three consecutive years. Throughout his career, Booth has been intimately involved in the successful completion and planning for transit projects around the country.
Booth served as project manager responsible for leading the final design team on the $100 million, 2.1-mile modern streetcar in downtown Milwaukee and the $30 million Milwaukee Streetcar Lakefront Line project, which are under construction and expected to open in 2018. He also has played integral roles in other high-profile projects, such as the QLINE in Detroit, Michigan, which opened for revenue service on May 12, 2017. Milwaukee and Detroit both have the most robust off-wire/battery-powered streetcar systems in the United States. He also is the project manager for the 3.3-mile TramLinkBR streetcar in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and the deputy project manager for the East-West bus rapid transit in Milwaukee County.
His commitment to transit planning in urban environments comes through in his active involvement in a variety of professional and civic organizations, including the Community Streetcar Coalition, an organization of cities, local government entities, transit agencies and individuals committed to proactively advocating for increased funding and the advancement of streetcar projects around the country. Booth is also a member of both the national and Wisconsin chapters of the American Planning Association.
Locally, Booth is active in improving communities, including serving as vice chairman for the Martin Luther King Jr. Drive-Business Improvement District and sitting on the board of the local Historic Brewers Hill Neighborhood Association. Booth credits his success to having a passion for his career. As he puts it, it allows him to focus and spend more time on the job, because it’s something he truly love to do. He also strives to listen and learn from his peers.
"I enjoy working in transit projects that at the end of the day are helping clients implement complicated and complex projects that alternately will help improve a community and a region. Mobility is such a critical aspect to quality of life and helping to improve regions for folks being able to get to school, work, the doctor and leisure. It's just really enjoyable being an urban planner and getting to see important projects help improve a community. Connecting people to those places is really important at the end of the day."
"Honestly a lot of the people in the industry, they're fighting the good fight to provide access to transportation whether it's bus, bike or rail, to improve mobility and access to improve quality of life. I enjoy working with different clients and different regions. I serve the city of Milwaukee here and Milwaukee County Transit System and generally a lot of people are trying to do things for the greater good of the community and it's fun to be part of that."
"I am a group director here in Milwaukee, so that means that I have 30 or so staff that report to me so it's always challenging managing staff needs. At the same time, I am also a project manager so I work for the city of Milwaukee on the Milwaukee Streetcar, which is has been a key project for Milwaukee County. Juggling the responsibilities with project needs, staff needs and staff management. Fortunately I was recently named the national streetcar management leader for HNTB for the whole county so adding that responsibility of coordinating our 60 offices throughout the country and delivering streetcar project for clients and winning new work for our first — I guess the toughest thing in my job is balancing responsibilities, but I'm making sure that I don't drop the ball and deliver the expectations that I present."
