Metro News Release

For immediate release: May 29, 2003

National Minority Transportation Officials" Conference set for July 8-12, 2003

Metro and local D.C. chapter of the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials finalize plans

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) and the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Chapter of the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) are finalizing plans for the annual national COMTO Conference from July 8 to 12, 2003, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington, D.C."We are very pleased with the pace and progress of our planning to date," noted Gwen Harris-Gale, COMTO Conference Planning Chair. "The planning effort has involved a strong partnership with Metro, as the official host transit property, the co-host Maryland COMTO Chapter, and officials from related transit authorities, transportation agencies and organizations, as well as support transportation industries and companies."Hundreds of COMTO members nationwide and transportation-related organization officials have received the preliminary program booklet (enclosed) which outlines the schedule of events for the conference, transportation arrangements, and hotel accommodations. The main hotel where the conference will take place, the Grand Hyatt, 10th and H streets, N.W., near the Metro Center station on the Red, Blue, and Orange lines, has already sold out the block of rooms set aside for attendees at the conference. COMTO is planning for approximately 1,000 attendees at this meeting. So, the local chapter has arranged for participants to obtain overflow rooms during their stay in town at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel at 2660 Woodley Road, N.W., a mere three Metrorail stops on the Red Line from the Grand Hyatt.District of Columbia Mayor Anthony A. Williams, as the Honorary Chair of the conference, will greet attendees and officially welcome them to the city at the Opening Plenary session on July 10. Other notables, including Federal Transit Administrator Jenna Dorn, will participate in the conference various times throughout the five days as guest speakers and/or panel moderators.In addition to sending copies of the preliminary program booklet to members, the organizers of the conference have sent periodic newsletters, called the COMTO Conference Connection (enclosed), to members and supporters of the conference. The fifth edition of this newsletter, disseminated earlier this month, discussed the COMTO position paper distributed nationwide in partnership with the American Public Transportation Association on the reauthorization of the national legislation called the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st century. The paper discusses the importance in supporting public transportation in general and minority and disadvantaged transportation communities in particular.The newsletter also reported the sites of the next two national COMTO conferences: the 2004 conference will be in Cleveland, Ohio, and the 2005 conference in Atlanta, Georgia.

News release issued on May 29, 2003.