2002 Transit Award Winners in Virginia
The Honorable Cameron Pitts, President of the Virginia Transit Association, announced the Virginia Transit Association 2002 Award winners at the Awards Luncheon held May 30, 2002, at the Cavalier Hotel in Virginia Beach. The transit association is comprised of 45 transit properties and businesses related to the transit industry throughout the Commonwealth.

2002 Public Transportation Leadership Awards
The Public Transportation Leadership Awards were presented to Governor Mark R. Warner; Delegate John A. "Jack" Rollison, III; Senator Marty Williams; and Senator Charles J. Colgan, for their leadership in the passage of legislation initiating transportation referenda in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads. Each of the legislators has a record of support for public transportation.

The referenda, if passed, will provide substantial funding to advance major public transportation projects in both regions, helping to improve air quality and manage congestion. (The number of public transportation projects and dollars dedicated to transit increased as the legislation wound its way through the legislative process.) Governor Warner's amendment to the SB668 at the veto session revived the Northern Virginia referendum increased by 40 percent, the dollars designated for public transportation projects in that region.

Governor Mark Warner	Delegate John A. "Jack" Rollison, III
Delegate Robert Francis "Bob" McDonnell	Senator Charles J. Colgan
Senator Martin "Marty" Williams

2002 VTA Special Recognition

Multi-modal Transportation Award
Delegate Robert Francis "Bob" McDonnell received the Multi-modal Transportation Award for successfully sponsoring a bill, which established a multi-modal transportation office under the Secretary of Transportation.

Outstanding Contribution by a Public Official Award
The Honorable Elaine McConnell, Member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and Chairman of the Virginia Railway Express (VRE, received the Outstanding Contribution by a Public Official Award for her leadership in the establishment and growth of the VRE.

Innovative Program Award for the Small Urban System
Danville Transit won the Innovative Program Award for the Small Urban System category for adapting service to meet the changing needs of employers and employees in the region. Arlington County Transit's Commuter Assistance program won the Large Urban System Award for development of high tech easy to use tools that help employers and employees access tax credits, when employees take public transportation to work.

Innovative Program Award
The second award winner for the Innovative Program Award is the Arlington County Commuter Assistance Program. Long recognized as a leader in providing cutting edge commuter services, the Arlington County Program has done it again! Arlington Transportation Partners, the employer services division of the commuter assistance program, has developed innovative, high tech tools that have revolutionized the way agencies sell employers on the benefits of transit, ridesharing, and other alternatives to driving alone.

This year's award especially recognizes two initiatives of this program ´ a CD-ROM called "Commuter Choice ´ Where Commuting Means Business" and a new on-line initiative called Commuter Direct.Com Corporate Services.

Although relatively new, bother products have contributed to record levels of program growth. In fact, over 50% of the employees working in Arlington County are in companies who participate in Arlington Transportation Partners programs. That is 51% market penetration. The Commuter Direct.Com project has garnered national attention and interest from other transportation agencies in the United States.

Outstanding Public Transportation Marketing Large Urban Area Award
The winner is GRTC Transit System from Richmond.

Prior to 2001, there was no concerted effort to develop a consistent BRAND image for GRTC Transit System's services. GRTC made their transit system more visible in the community, extended services and made their service more user friendly. All buses and vans under the GRTC Transit System umbrella are now painted with GRTC's brand signature and new logos. GRTC's fleet of vehicles are graphically integrated to create a feeling of omnipresence on the streets of the regionÏcommunicating a sense of the variety of transportation services provided by GRTC to the community.

As part of the branding campaign, GRTC Transit System launched a plethora of new services including:

• A "Kid's Lab" Educational bus
• The new Chesterfield LINK intra-county and commuter services
• New Bus Stop signs integrated with an easy to use schedule guide
• New GRTC and RideFinders websites incorporating the new look and messages.

Outstanding Public Transportation Marketing Small Urban System Award
Alexandria Transit Company won the Outstanding Public Transportation Marketing Small Urban System Award for its "Dash About" free weekend service, a demonstration program which used eye catching and uniquely designed buses to both attract tourists and visitors to transit and improve access from Metrorail to Old Town Alexandria. The GRTC Transit System won the Outstanding Public Transportation Marketing Large Urban System Award for the development of a consistent image for the transit system ´ a revamping of their BRAND image that raised the system's visibility in the community and system-wide customer friendly improvements.

VTA Member Distinctions

The Honorable Cameron C. Pitts, City of Portsmouth Council Member, was recognized for his leadership as President of the VTA over the past two years.

Leo Bevon, Director of the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, was recognized for a decade of service to public transportation in Virginia.

Special guest speaker at the luncheon was Secretary of Transportation, the Honorable Whitt Clement. He accepted the Public Transportation Leadership Award on behalf of the Governor.