At a Special Board Meeting on Thursday morning July 14, the SMART Board of Directors accepted the resignation of General Manager Dwight Ferrell after four years of service. Effective August 1, the Board appointed Tiffany Gunter as the new General Manager.
TRU applauds this move: Tiffany Gunter is a consummate transit professional who has spent twenty years working for quality transit and public services throughout the metro Detroit region. She grew up here riding the bus and can empathize with rider concerns. She has worked at RTA, SEMCOG, the City of Birmingham, and at SMART.
Ms. Gunter is a great communicator who really listens to riders and can effectively talk with a wide range of diverse audiences. This is essential as both Wayne County and Macomb County will be considering transit millages next year; both have very diverse communities with a wide range of needs that need addressed in different ways.
TRU has often been frustrated by the slow pace in which SMART has addressed the no-show bus crisis that has been plaguing the SMART system for much of the past four years. We are hopeful that under Tiffany’s leadership, SMART will more quickly and thoroughly address that have limited SMART’s effectiveness as a reliable mobility provider.
We look forward to working with Tiffany and the SMART team to help SMART provide the world-class regional transit service our community needs.