Action in Motion...
Your Regional Voice for Transportation Mobility
May 16th Monthly Luncheon
Russell Zapalac
TXDOT
Mr. Russell Zapalac serves as the Chief Planning and Project Officer for Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). His duties include oversight of TxDOT planning activities, development of a new enterprise project management system and leading TxDOT’s comprehensive development agreements and public-private partnership program.
Throughout his nearly 20-year career, Mr. Zapalac has always worked with large highway projects. He served as senior vice president and director of transportation for HDR, where he managed the 17-state central region and led 500 professionals. He served as the program manager for TxDOT’s SH 130: Segments 1-4 project. He also worked for the Transportation Corridor Agencies in Orange County, California as the Director of Design and Construction where he oversaw a 67-mile, $5 billion tollway program created with design-build contracts.
Mr. Zapalac is on the Board of Directors for the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, serves on the Transportation Transformation Group’s Executive Committee and is the past president of the American Road and Transportation Builders Association’s Public-Private Venture Division.
The Bay Area Houston Transportation Partnership serves as the transportation management organization facilitating Regional Mobility Management for employers, government agencies and residents in the Bay Area Transportation Partnership regional service area.
VISION STATEMENT
The Bay Area will be an economically robust community with an environmentally sound and diverse mobility system to improve the quality of life for its residents.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
- Empower Commute Alternative Committees to prioritize, plan and achieve BayTran goals and objectives.
- Work with Regional Transportation Agencies: H-GAC, Texas Department of Transportation, Houston Transtar, METRO and Connect Transit to address Transportation Management for our region.
- Work with levels of Governmental Authority including: municipal, regional, county, state & federal.
- Establish Strategic Regional Alliances with key regional organizations -- Economic Development Foundations, Chambers, Developers.
- Establish effective Transportation Demand Management with Industry, Communities and Residents.
REGIONAL INITIATIVES / PROJECTS
- Participation on TxDOT 2030 Committee Public Hearing
- Task Force Leader on Harris County Hurricane Ike Damage Assessment Report
- Intelligent Transportation Systems (Project StarStream) for Bay Area transportation corridors & members
- POHA/Port Road Expansion Initiative Support
- Economic Alliance Houston Port Region Transportation Task Force Supoport
- Texas State Legislation passed to designate the NASA area scenic corridor as the "NASA Parkway" and a BayTran project to officially recognize the historical significance of "NASA Road 1" with a historical marker.
- Creation of a regional Scenic District stretching from Highway 146 in Seabrook west to the City of Alvin, featuring uniform lighting, signage and landscaping.
- BayTran Leadership to finalize a $1.9 million Intelligent Transportation System grant for a regional video integration and distribution project with the Texas Department of Transportation and Houston Transtar to help with traffic management, homeland security and hurricane evacuation for the Bay Area Houston communities and citizens
