[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 55 (Wednesday, April 1, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E839-E840]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       A TRIBUTE TO ROGER SNOBLE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 1, 2009

  Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Speaker, I rise today, along with Congresswoman 
Lucille Roybal-Allard, to celebrate the 45-year transportation career 
of Roger Snoble, who will retire on April 8, 2009. Roger Snoble, and 
his wife Kit, reside in Pasadena, CA in the 29th Congressional District 
and he worked at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation 
Authority for the past eight years, located in the 34th Congressional 
District.
  Over the past 45 years, Roger has applied tremendous skill and 
leadership to create better public transportation systems for all of 
his communities. As a result, he has distinguished himself as one of 
the Nation's foremost experts and practitioners in the transportation 
sector. He began his transportation career in 1965 as a planner for the 
TriCounty Regional Planning Commission in Akron, Ohio. He then moved on 
to work for Akron's Metro Transit district in 1971. And in 1973, Roger 
moved to California and worked his way through the ranks of planning 
and scheduling to be the President and General Manager of the San Diego 
Transit Corporation.
  Always wanting to challenge himself, Roger went on to serve as 
President and Executive Director of the Dallas Area Rapid Transit 
District (DART) for seven and a half years. In 2001, Roger was 
appointed to serve as Chief Executive Officer for the Los Angeles 
County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), a multimodal 
transportation agency responsible for bus and rail operations, planning 
and construction in Los Angeles County. During his seven and a half 
years at Metro, Roger has guided the agency through successful openings 
of the Metro Gold and Orange Lines, introduced scores of popular Metro 
Rapid Lines, and seen Metro named ``America's best large transit 
agency.'' He also co-founded the Mobility-21 Coalition and was 
instrumental in the passage of Measure R, a \1/2\ cent sales tax that 
will fund a comprehensive package of new transit, street and highway 
improvements in Los Angeles County for the next 30 years.
  Roger has won numerous awards throughout his transportation career. 
The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) named Snoble 
``Transit Manager of the Year'' in 1998. Under his leadership, Metro 
was named by APTA as ``Outstanding Public Transportation System'' in 
2006, and DART was cited by APTA as the ``Transit Agency of the Year'' 
in 1997.
  Although we know Roger primarily through his role in transportation, 
Roger and his wife, Kit, are founding members of the African 
Conservation Fund, which assists communities in the East Africa in 
creating economic opportunities that result in improved wildlife 
management and wealthier and healthier communities. In addition, Roger 
has served on the boards of the San Diego Zoo, Dallas Zoological 
Association and the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association. He recently 
joined the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in Palm Desert, CA. Through 
these experiences, Roger has a vast photojournal library that will 
continue to expand in his retirement as he leads safaris to educate 
communities about the importance of conservation as well as economic 
development opportunities in surrounding areas. He also has extended 
his photojournalist editing skills to many local non-profits as another 
example of his passion to help others.
  We extend our warm congratulations and appreciation to Roger and his 
wife Kit for Roger's tireless service to the public transportation 
communities in Akron, OH, San Diego, CA, Dallas, Texas and Los Angeles 
County and wish him well in retirement.

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