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What did you want to be growing up? 

I was mainly interested in Civil Engineering, Landscape Architecture, and Urban Planning. 

What was your first job?

My first “real” job was working as a land surveyor for the engineering department in a suburb of Boston.      

What did you study in college?

Civil and Environmental Engineering  

How did you end up at DVRPC?

After grad school, I spent almost 20 years working in transportation planning /engineering consulting. I was working for a firm in northern California in August 2008 when the recession happened and a lot of our work dried up. They eventually closed their Sacramento office in November 2012. Around this time, DVRPC was looking for a transportation engineer, and I applied and was hired in February of 2013. 

What are your responsibilities? Has anything changed over time?

I do a lot of model applications work–running our travel demand model to estimate future traffic volumes and transit ridership, and running EPA’s MOVES5 air quality model to estimate future Ozone and PM_2.5 emissions. In terms of changes, the state-of-the-practice is constantly evolving–for example, we’re in the middle of transitioning from a traditional four-step trip-based travel model to a new Activity-Based Model (ABM). 

If you could immediately implement any change to the region, what would you do?

I wouldn’t do anything too drastic–just maybe a little more regulation and enforcement regarding the bigger and faster e-motos (the ones doing 20+ mph). I don’t think they should be allowed to operate on sidewalks with pedestrians. 

Who is someone you’d like to meet? 

Kyle Schwarber, the Phillies DH

What is your favorite leisure activity?

I spend a lot of time running and biking on the Schuylkill River Trail. 

What is the last book you read? 

I just recently finished reading bios of the actors Anthony Hopkins and Clint Eastwood, and the tennis player Bjorn Borg. 

What are the top three places you want to travel to?

1) Tahiti  

2) England–I have family there I haven’t seen in a long time.

3) A safari somewhere in Africa while there are still a few wild elephants, lions, and rhinos roaming around. 

What is the most meaningful item in your house?

Photos of family and friends          

What are you looking forward to the most in the next year?

I’m looking forward to finishing the Household Travel Survey we’ve been working on for the last few years.