| Media: Click on image to download print-size |
 |
| The home team advantage - from left, Arthur Winston Division 5 champion mechanics Andrew Warren, Jr., Rommel Vargas and Frank Forde and North Los Angeles Division 3 Operator Juan Navarro, who claimed victory at the 2008 Metro Bus Roadeo in Los Angeles, went on to Seattle to the win the prestigious 34th APTA 2009 International Bus Roadeo held May 3.. |
Metro Bus Team Wins Grand Champion Title at 2009 International Bus Roadeo in Seattle
Metro has won the Grand Champion Award at the prestigious 2009 International Bus Roadeo -- a competition generally regarded as the Super Bowl for bus operators and mechanics.
More than 50 public transportation systems in North American competed this week in Seattle, Wash. Winners were announced at an awards dinner May 5. The annual competition is held in conjunction with the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) Bus and Paratransit Conference.
The honor recognizes men and women who keep North America’s bus systems safe and efficient. It is given to the bus operator and maintenance teams that have the highest combined score in a series of events testing bus operators’ driving skills and mechanics’ abilities to troubleshoot mechanical problems and fix them quickly.
The Metro maintenance team of Frank Forde, Rommel Vargas and Andrew Warren Jr. along with operator Juan Navarro came in first or second in four of six timed technical events, accumulating enough points to beat out scores of competitors from transit agencies across the country and Canada. Fifty-three bus operators competed in the operator contest for 40-foot buses. Thirty-six teams competed in the maintenance contest.
The Metro team scored highest in the rankings to beat out the second runner up San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority and the third place Capital Metro Transportation Authority from Austin, Tex.
The Metro maintenance team also bagged a Special Maintenance Award for “Best Score” for racking up perfect scores in two categories of the competition.
“This is a wonderful achievement and is a reflection of the skills and accomplishments of the outstanding people who run Metro's transit system,” said Metro CEO Art Leahy.
The maintenance team of Warren, Vargas and Forde are assigned to Arthur Winston Metro Division 5; operator Navarro is with Metro’s North Los Angeles Division 3.
Metro teams have consistently placed high in the annual competition and won the prestigious Grand Champion award just two years ago at the 32nd International Bus Roadeo held in Nashville, Tenn in 2007.
The 2007 Champion team of Metro mechanics Frank Forde, Rommel Vargas and Andrew Warren Jr., along with top operator Mark Holland, came in first or second in four of six timed technical events, accumulating enough points to beat out 46 other teams and win by a significant margin of 35 points.
“In 2010, Metro will take the field at the next APTA Roadeo as the Defending International Champion! We will be ready!” said CEO Leahy.
Metro-059