Dave Anderson, a civil engineer and planner with Timmons Group, was recently appointed to the Greater Richmond Transit System’s board of directors (GRTC). He serves with eight other representatives from the City of Richmond, Chesterfield County, and Henrico County. Dave was appointed by the Chesterfield Board of Supervisors to represent Chesterfield County.
The GRTC, founded in 1860, has operated nearly continuously for over 150 years since the Civil War. It was the first public transit agency to implement the system-wide use of electric streetcars. The company has a history of progression, and its attitude carries forth to today, with improvements and expanded services to support accessibility in Greater Richmond.
Dave recently partook in a bus driving simulator that GRTC uses to train new drivers. “The simulator is generally for the exclusive use of bus operators-in-training,” Dave said. “When I joined the board and learned that they had a simulator, I wanted to try it so that I could better understand what operators deal with in driving such big vehicles.” Dave is the first board member to use the simulator, and GRTC CEO, Sheryl Adams, was excited to have one of its board members take an interest in the details of the operation. “We appreciate Dave’s initiative in understanding what our drivers face every day, and we hope his example will lead to more board members following in his footsteps,” Adams said.
Dave’s tenure at the firm has always included a desire to help create multimodal opportunities for the localities in which he practices. In his role at Timmons Group, Dave says his investment in the GRTC board has led to many benefits from a perspective of better supporting his community and clients. “Being on the board gives me good insight about the operational aspects of a large transit company. My personal goal in my role on the board is to move the needle on making the Richmond region’s transit system more appealing to the general public as a reliable transportation option. Much needs to happen for that to become a reality,” Dave said.
Learn more about Dave and see a clip of him driving the simulator here!
