Sn. 1, #19 Inessa M. Vitko: Being an Empowered Leader in the Transit Industry

HAZARD GIRLS

Although women are contributing to the transformation of public transport, they frequently remain less visible and their role in making transit safer, more inclusive, and sustainable is not always acknowledged. Today’s guest is Inessa M. Vitko, the Chief Operations Officer of CTRAN in Vancouver, Washington. Inessa leads C-TRAN’s largest department, which includes all fixed-route and paratransit operators, plus dispatchers, field supervisors, customer service representatives, and other employees. She has spent more than a decade in the transit industry, and her previous experience includes work in budgeting and grants, operations, and customer communications. For the better part of 2020, Inessa has been primarily concerned with navigating her team through the pandemic and readying them for C-TRAN’s second BRT (Bus Rapid Transit Line), major technology upgrades, and internal restructuring. In her 14 years in the industry, one of the things that Inessa is most proud of has been the strong relationships she has built with the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 757, which allows them to make changes collaboratively, including protecting jobs through the current crisis. In this episode, Inessa shares what a typical day as a COO looks like, why she chose the transit industry, and how being a woman in the transit industry has affected her. We also dive into the importance of standing up to sexism, the state of diversity in the industry, and how COVID has affected her as a woman in a position of leadership. Tune in today!

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