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Thinker In Residence Fred Hansen to ponder Adelaide transport

ADELAIDE'S next Thinker in Residence will put the city's public transport system under the microscope.

Transport Minister Patrick Conlon today announced Fred Hansen, the general manager of transport provider TriMet in Portland, Oregon, will begin in October.

Mr Conlon said Mr Hansen's experiences would help South Australia implement its next phase of public transport projects and would influence the state's first transport-oriented development at Bowden.

"Mr Hansen's home town of Portland is internationally recognised as one of the finest exponents of a sustainable and integrated public transport system," he said.

"In particular we are looking to benefit from Mr Hansen's expertise in the provision of higher-density development along transport corridors as we pursue a more liveable and sustainable city."

Last week's Federal Budget announced support for extensions of the Gawler and Noarlunga rail lines and another $61 million to gives O-Bahn buses priority in the city.

Mr Hansen will take over from Professor Laura Lee, who has focused on the integrated design of cities.

TriMet was represented at the 2009 APTA International Bus Roadeo competition held last week in Seattle. Participants took Amtrak to the conference and were able to attend sessions along with their colleagues from other properties.

On the bus maintenance side, Powell mechanics Randy Reusser, Victor Kuss and Brian Zach took 15th place out of 36 teams. One reason they did so well is that they found time to practice for several hours on a new bus engine module and computer diagnostic program, which TriMet doesn’t have. The team scored 300 out of 350 possible points in that event, beating King County Metro and Denver. Training Manager Greg Haley and trainer Scott Mickelson accompanied the team.

Transportation was represented by Karen Asio, a bus operator from Merlo. In the portion of the contest where operators compete on the pre-trip inspection, Karen finished fourth. In the driving portion of the competition, on what our trainers described as a very challenging course, Karen finished 52nd. Karen drove well but lost points on her overall time. In a competition such as this, a matter of seconds separate the contestants. Karen was supported by Assistant Manager Transportation Training Barry Tillson and trainer Jeff Muceus.

Congratulations to them all for their hard work, their achievements and for representing the agency. While the Roadeo will not take place this year, it will return in the future. It is an important event for showcasing the talent of our employees and building community among employees.