ATS, the would-be vendor for the British PRT "system" ULTra is looking for a new CEO:
Founder Martin Lowson has steered the strategic development of the company to this point, assisted by his fellow executive and non executive directors.
Now however, with the emphasis moving from R&D to operations, corporate development and worldwide sales, he and the Board wish to appoint a seasoned CEO with experience of these activities.
There's the usual PRT nonsense on this site, but this caught my eye:
The Board is chaired by Trevor Smallwood who has 34 years of public transport experience and was co-founder of First Group Plc. Trevor has been chairman for 6 years.
First Group doesn't seem to have a very good reputation among transit riders in the U.K.:
Around 300 people marched through Sheffield last Saturday to protest against First’s bus fares rise. As one woman put it, “I only want to ride on the bus, not buy it!”
First seems to be one of the the worst when it comes to privatizing transit:
In 1999, First defended its profits rise despite being the operator of one of the trains involved in the Paddington rail crash of that year, insisting that profits were not being prioritised above safety.
More about First in this BBC story. Interesting that First operates a fleet of school buses in America. The potential for growth in the corporate school bus business lies mainly in the creation of suburban sprawl rather than transit-oriented communities. Can't have those kids walking or taking transit to school... bad for the bottom line.
As it is in the USA, PRT in the UK seems to be a stalking-horse for individuals and organizations that want to do something nasty to public transit.
For more about ULTra go to the PRT is a Joke website.
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