The 2020 recipient of the Sharon D. Banks Award is Robert H. Prince of HNTB Corporation. Prince is recognized for his impact on the people he has served and for his dedication in supporting and mentoring the next generation of transit leaders.
"I went from bus operator to the boardroom," quips Prince. He began his public transit career in 1976 as a bus driver for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). Over the next 21 years he worked his way through the ranks until in 1997, he became General Manager. At that time, it was the fourth largest multimodal transportation agency in the United States and carried over one million passengers a day.
The Award was presented during the TRB Annual Meeting on Wednesday,
January 15, 2020, a day Prince noted was particularly significant to him
as it is the birthday of both Martin Luther King, Jr. and his mother.
"This award is a birthday present to my mother who never got to see me
become General Manager," Prince said.
"When I became General Manager, I talked to Sharon Banks and Shirley DeLibero in Houston. There were not a lot of people of color or women who were running transportation agencies. When you think back and then think of people in those positions now, I would attribute to Sharon success as a pioneer in the transit world," he notes.
"You need a "kitchen cabinet". Being in leadership can be lonely. Family supports you, but doesn't understand the day-to-day operations. Your staff wants you to have answers, not questions. Asking your peers might make you look weak. You need those people who will tell you what you need to hear, not just what you want to hear."
"And you need to listen. Always listen," Prince continues. "When you build a team, hire people who are smarter than you. I always hired to my weaknesses, not my strengths."
Prince became known as “The People’s General Manager.” Under his leadership the MBTA received the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA’s) Minority and Woman Advancement Award and the Women’s Transportation Seminar’s 1999 Employer of the Year Award. After retiring as the MBTA’s General Manager in 2001, he joined AECOM where he helped other transit agencies to build, strengthen and improve their operations and infrastructure. He is currently with HNTB consulting on transportation issues.
Until 2015, Prince served as Chairman of the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO), where he directed many successful programs and initiatives during his more than 17 years with the organization.
He became involved in mentoring as a faculty member for the Eno Center for Transportation Leadership Management Training Programs, through his leadership in APTA, and in the Mentorship Program initiated at Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute. In all those venues, Prince's presentation was “Let’s Talk” with the students asking questions and him giving real-life answers and inspiring them by sharing the challenges he experienced during his career.
He has served on several Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) panels included the panel that oversaw development of the
TCRP Report 148: Practical Guide for Recruiting Minorities for Chief Executive Officers at Public Transit Agencies. He also served as a member of the TCRP Oversight and Project Selection Committee. In 2011 Prince was recognized as a National Associate of the National Research Council of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
His other honors include being named a member of the APTA Hall of Fame and receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Council of University Transportation Centers.
The Sharon D. Banks Award is a biennial award established in her memory. Banks chaired the TRB Executive Committee in 1998. She passed away in 1999. The award recognizes innovative and successful leadership in people-oriented initiatives in transportation, sustained over an extended period of time, that exemplify Banks’ ideals of humanity and service.
"Future leaders need to know that Sharon was never too busy to mentor," says Prince. "She was, and will always be one of my role models."
Find out more about Prince at
https://footprince.net/
This Summary Last Modified On: 1/31/2023