UTIP hosts international rail forum in NYC

Rail transit professionals from around the world will convene in New York City Dec. 8-9 for the inaugural meeting of the UITP (International Association of Public Transport) International Rail Forum for North America.

The Forum will take place at the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority headquarters in Lower Manhattan. “It will bring together rail-operating public transit agencies in North America for discussions on industry hot topics and link the region with global best practices in the sector,” say the event’s organizers. “The inaugural Forum will discuss a range of topics, including: the challenge of maintaining and reinventing legacy rail systems; preparedness and resilience for climate change and terror threats; global best practices in light rail and innovation in customer service and safety.”

“The Forum’s primary objective is to connect North America’s rail transit agencies to the wealth of experience available in the international transit community and to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and best practices,” say the organizers. “The meeting will bring together leading domestic transport executives from New York, Boston, Portland, Los Angeles and Washington as well as international executives from London, Paris, Barcelona, Tokyo, Frankfurt, Brussels, Hong Kong and Japan.” In subsequent years, the Forum “will identify critical issues and themes that transit agencies in North America are concerned about and will host workshops, research or conferences to help its members build the capacity to determine solutions, connect and share resources and attain critical knowledge in each subject.

For more information about the inaugural International Rail Forum for North America meeting, click http://www.uitp.org/events/international-rail-forum-north-america-meeting.