Amtrak
WTS-DC’s 2024 Woman of the Year is Laura Mason, Amtrak’s Executive Vice President of Capital Delivery and a 2024 honoree of Railway Age’s Readers Most Influential Leaders program. She was selected for her commitment to the region and service as “an outstanding role model who has contributed to the advancement of women and minorities in transportation,” Amtrak reported Jan. 15.
Each year, WTS-DC recognizes “the area’s leading women who have had a significant impact on transportation, as well as prominent men and distinguished organizations in our nation’s capital—public or private—that support the development, growth, and advancement of women in transportation.”
WTS-DC in 2023 and WTS International in 2023 honored Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner with the Honorable Ray LaHood Award; Garner in 2022 was selected by Railway Age readers as a Most Influential Leader. Two other Amtrak leaders have received WTS-DC’s Woman of the Year honors—in 2019 and 1982.
Mason since 2021 has led Amtrak’s infrastructure investments that support future growth along the Northeast Corridor and around the United States, while also improving safety, reliability, and travel times for riders. In the D.C. region specifically, investments include new trains for Northeast Regional and Amtrak Virginia riders, upgrades at Ivy City Yard, and several tunnel and bridge replacements or expansions. She served previously in leadership roles at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, where she was responsible for driving transit capital projects across D.C., Maryland and Virginia. Before that, she spent more than a decade at Bechtel Corporation.
“At WTS-DC, we were thrilled to honor Laura Mason as the chapter’s 2024 Woman of the Year,” WTS-DC President Sophia Guiny said. “With historic levels of funding for Amtrak in recent years, Laura has risen to lead a truly massive portfolio of capital projects, and upgrades to the Northeast Corridor will directly benefit mobility in the D.C. area. Her career is a great example and inspiration to many women in the field.”
“It’s an honor to follow in the footsteps of current and former leaders at Amtrak, WMATA and elsewhere in the DMV region who have paved the path for women in the transportation industry and deservedly recognized by WTS-DC in the past,” Mason said. “That includes bosses, mentors, and peers like Stephen Gardner, Paul Wiedefeld, Jennifer Mitchell, Andy Off, and many others who provided their leadership, guidance, and support that helped lead me where I am today and continually inspire me to pay it forward for the next generation of female transportation leaders here in the Washington area and beyond.”
CTA
The CTA Board of Directors on Jan. 15 appointed an interim agency President: Nora Leerhsen, according to WTTW News. Leerhsen has served as Chief of Staff at CTA since 2018. She joined the agency in 2014 as Project Coordinator–Compliance and was elevated to Regulatory Compliance Officer, Senior Advisor–Chief Operating Officer and Chief of Staff, and Deputy Chief of Staff before accepting her current role. She has a bachelor’s degree from George Washington University, master’s degrees from Chestnut Hill College and University of Chicago, and a law degree from the University of Wisconsin.
Leerhsen will succeed Dorval Carter Jr., who will retire as CTA leader on Jan. 31 after a 40-year career in public transportation.
“I look forward to serving our riders and employees in this new role,” Leerhsen said in a statement to WTTW News, which noted that she would be the first women to head CTA. “This is a critical time for our agency and for the future of public transit. As acting president, I will build on our accomplishments as an agency and am confident that we are up to the task of carrying CTA successfully through this transition.”
RAC
Eric Harvey will take over RAC leadership on Feb. 3, following the announced departure of President and CEO Marc Brazeau, who is stepping down Feb. 28, 2025.
Harvey has more than 25 years’ experience in legal and regulatory transportation matters. Most recently, he was Assistant General Counsel on Policy and Legislative Affairs at CN. At the Class I railroad, Harvey worked on key files such as reviews of the Railway Safety Act and the Canada Transportation Act and led advocacy initiatives. Previously, he worked in Ottawa for federal agencies regulating transportation. Harvey is a bilingual graduate from King’s College London (Master of Laws) and the University of Ottawa (Bachelor of Laws).
“We are very pleased to have Eric join RAC,” RAC Chair and CN Senior Vice President and Chief Stakeholder Relations Officer Janet Drysdale said. “He brings an impressive depth of knowledge and keen understanding of the rail industry and federal government to the role. As we enter a period of transition both in Canada and abroad, RAC will play a critical role in advocating for rail as an important economic asset through the safe and sustainable transportation of goods and people. With his background in both the private and public sectors, Eric is the right person to assume the leadership of RAC and represent the Canadian rail industry.”
“Canadian railways are strategic assets for moving goods and people,” Harvey said. “I am committed to continuing to advance the great work the association has been doing in key areas, especially ahead of this transition time for Canada and the U.S. I would like to thank RAC’s Board of Directors for their confidence and trust, and I look forward to working with the team and our partners to serve our members.”
