San Diego, CA – In a unanimous vote, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) board of directors reelected Harry Mathis to his third four-year term as chairperson Dec. 12. Mathis was first elected as chair in Jan. 2006.
“Harry’s leadership has been instrumental in the continued success of MTS and our standing as one of the top public transit agencies in the nation,” said Paul Jablonski, MTS chief executive officer. “We are fortunate to have serving as our chair, not only a strong advocate for public transportation, but also someone who truly has a passion for what we do.”
A long-time transit advocate and public servant, Mathis was raised in San Francisco and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley. He was commissioned into the U.S. Navy upon graduation and retired in 1981, having achieved the rank of captain after a 28-year career, which included command of a nuclear submarine. In 1993, Mathis was elected as the San Diego District One councilmember for the first of two terms, including serving as deputy mayor in 2000, before leaving office because of term limits.
“I am very grateful to the board for their vote of confidence in allowing me to continue as their chair,” said Mathis. “It is a great honor to be a part of a world class system like MTS, backed by a visionary board of directors and a superb professional staff under the outstanding leadership of our CEO, which provides vital transportation services to our community. These are exciting times as we work to upgrade and expand our facilities and services to better meet future demands and the needs of those who depend on us for mobility.”
It was during his time on the City Council that Mathis began his 20-year association with public transit in San Diego. He first served as chair of San Diego Trolley and then simultaneously as the chair pro tem on the Metropolitan Transit Development Board (MTDB), before becoming an ex-officio board member of MTS, the successor to MTDB, leading to his election as chair beginning in 2006. Mathis was also the driving force to bring Vintage Trolley service to San Diego, receiving board approval for the project in 2005.
MTS operates more than 90 bus routes and three Trolley lines on 53 miles of double-tracked railway. Every day more than 275,000 passenger trips are taken on MTS services. For more information on how you can use public transportation and save money, go to www.sdmts.com.
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