News

National Traction Power Training Consortium Hosted by Metro Transit

Posted October 2023

Nineteen traction power subject matter experts (SMEs) from ten transit agencies convened for the third in-person consortium meeting on September 18-22, hosted by Metro Transit, a service of the Metropolitan Council, Minneapolis/St. Paul. ITLC’s Program Manager Amri Joyner and Instructional Designer Brandon Liu led the meeting which was held at Metro Transit. The consortium, meeting at the Green Line Operations and Maintenance Facility in St. Paul, opened with warm welcoming remarks by Metro Transit’s Deputy General Manager and Chief Operating Officer Brian Funk, ATU Local 1005 President Ryan Timlin, and Metro Transit’s Director of Rail Systems Maintenance Carlos Canchola.

 

Metro Transit’s Manager of Rail Training and Development Ona Pradhan helped plan the entire week, arranging for the group to use three training rooms for full group and coursework development team (CDT) meetings. The SMEs provided technical reviews and significant edits of traction power courses focusing on Overhead Catenary and Power Distribution courses. Midway into the week, the group toured Metro Transit’s Rail Support Facility, the Blue Line Maintenance Facility, and the Light Rail Training Center. In addition, the group also visited Metro Transit’s Rail Control Center and Light Rail Vehicle maintenance areas. It was an impressive tour where the SMEs inspected several substations, comparing technologies and layouts to their locations. Ona Pradhan spoke highly of the work of the Traction Power Maintenance Consortium stating that “Our curriculum has been strengthened by the knowledge base of all the Traction Power professionals who engage in this group.”

 

ITLC appreciates all who have contributed to the development of training courses for the Traction Power Training Consortium since its inception in 2020. For more information, please contact Amri Joyner. 

TLC’s Program Manager Amri Joyner addressing SMEs at Metro Transit's Green Line Operations and Maintenance Facility training room