The new Metropolitan Public Transportation Authority, which will take over Charlotte’s transit system, held its inaugural meeting Thursday.
The authority will oversee how revenue from a voter-approved 1% sales tax increase for transportation is spent. The group unanimously elected David Howard as its first chair.
Howard is a former Charlotte City Council member with extensive transportation experience. He previously worked at the N.C. Department of Transportation and for former Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx when Foxx led the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Howard said a key priority for the authority will be ensuring the transit system serves all communities equitably.
“A lot of what we need to do is to make sure that we treat everybody, no matter what part of the community, the same and they have access,” Howard said.
The authority includes 27 Mecklenburg County residents appointed by local and state government leaders.