Salpeas, Steven LaRocco advance at Parsons
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefPassenger rail veterans Takis Salpeas and Steven A. LaRocco have advanced to new positions in the Rail & Transit Systems Division of Parsons, effective immediately.
Salpeas, Senior Vice President and Manager of the firm’s Rail & Transit Systems Division, is now Global Rail & Transit Systems Director. In this role, he will focus on sales, marketing, and growth in rail and transit systems markets around the world.
Salpeas (top photo) has more than 30 years of experience in the development of major infrastructure projects in both the public and private sectors. He came to Parsons in 2006 after serving in senior management positions for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the Bay Area Rapid Transit District, and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. In these positions, he was responsible for managing $10 billion worth of rail project planning, design, and construction programs. Salpeas graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a master’s degree in civil engineering and a master’s degree in systems engineering. He also holds a degree in economics from the University of Athens in Greece.
Steven A. LaRocco has replaced Salpeas as Senior Vice President and Manager of the Rail & Transit Systems Division. In this role, he will be responsible for project performance, customer relationships, profit and loss, and human resources for the 550-person division.
LaRocco has more than 35 years of experience managing major rail transit projects. He has managed several billion-dollar programs around the world, including recently serving as project director for the $11 billion Etihad Rail program in the United Arab Emirates. LaRocco has been with Parsons since 1995, managing some of the firm’s highest profile projects. Before Parsons, he worked for the Long Island Rail Road in positions of increasing responsibility over a 23-year tenure. LaRocco holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., and he has done graduate work at New York Institute of Technology in New York City.
(Editor’s note: Steven LaRocco’s identical twin brother, Nicholas LaRocco, is a Vice President in the Rail & Transit Systems Division at Parsons. Both LaRoccos worked at the LIRR prior to joining Parsons. One of my first assignments at Railway Age in 1992 was a story on the Long Island Rail Road. I met and interviewed Steve (I think) at Penn Station New York about the new, under-construction LIRR concourse. I then went to the car and locomotive maintenance facility in Hillside, where I met his twin. I didn’t know there were twin LaRoccos working for the LIRR and was thoroughly confused for a while. Finally, Nick (with a laugh)—or was it Steve?—mercifully relieved me of my confusion. — William C. Vantuono)
