News
ITLC Holds First In-Person Traction Power Consortium Meeting
Posted May 2022
SMEs Pause for Photo before Touring SEPTA's Wayne Junction Substation
After two years of virtual meetings on coursework development, members of the national Traction Power Training Consortium finally met in person for four days in Philadelphia, April 26-29. Consortium member agency, SEPTA, hosted the group of 21 traction power subject matter experts (SMEs) and ITLC staff. All sessions were in SEPTA’s well-appointed training department at its headquarters on Market Street, Philadelphia.
SMEs from Buffalo and Dallas Join ITLC Staff on an Evening Walkabout in Center City
Participants received warm opening welcomes from David Montvydas, SEPTA’s Chief Engineer – MOW, and Brian Pollitt, President of TWU Local 234, as well as background on the nation’s sixth largest public transportation system and TWU’s powerful history in the City of Brotherly Love. Recommendations to try the infamous Philly soft pretzel were well-received!
During the week, subject matter experts guided content to train new and experienced maintainers on Overhead Systems, Power Distribution, and Substations. Within these sessions, ITLC staff facilitated lively roundtable discussion on apprenticeship, drafted troubleshooting scenarios for each of the course topics, and toured two substation facilities. Most importantly, participants learned from each other, networked over shared experiences, and joined together in the common goal to build quality instruction for future traction power workforce.
Capitalizing on this momentum gained during the time together in Philadelphia, the Traction Power Training Consortium has planned for two teams of SMEs working on coursework development for Power Distribution and Substation to meet virtually in mid-May to develop content topics for these courses.
For more information on the national Traction Power Training Consortium, please contact Brandon Liu at bliu@transportcenter.org, Amri Joyner at ajoyner@transportcenter.org, or Melissa Huber at mhuber@transportcenter.org.
