North County Transit District (NCTD, The District) has hired Tom Tulley to serve as the agency’s Chief Operations Officer of Rail, effective today, May 13. In this role, he will be responsible for all The District’s rail operations and maintenance programs for the COASTER Commuter Rail and SPRINTER Hybrid Rail. Tom brings decades of experience to this position including operations, maintenance, safety and regulatory compliance.
“I have seen firsthand the incredible work that Tom has accomplished on several critical rail projects,” Shawn Donaghy, NCTD’s Chief Executive Officer stated. “This is a huge win for our agency to not only have such an accomplished rail professional, but to also have a world-class leader who will help develop the next phase of The District and our employees.”
Most recently, Tulley served as Managing Director / Country Manager for Stadler Services in the United States and Canada. In this role, he directed the corporate effort for all current and future Stadler U.S. and Canada properties to ensure all federal, state and local regulatory requirements were met. Prior to joining Stadler, Tulley served as Director of Regulatory Compliance and Rail Development with FirstGroup. This included serving as an international rail transportation executive, consultant and advisor working with companies in Canada, Spain, United Kingdom, Italy, Japan and Switzerland. One of the key projects was successfully developing a baseline operational plan for the Honolulu Area Rapid Transit (HART) rail line in Hawaii.
“I am excited to be a part of a great team that will bring improved service and infrastructure for the citizens of North San Diego County,” shared Tulley. “Service performance, safety, and security are not just goals – they are the outcomes of a well-trained and dedicated workforce in collaboration with members of our public.”
Tulley also held key leadership positions with Forth Worth Transportation Authority (Trinity Metro) working on TEXRail and Trinity Railway Express (TRE) and has 14 years of experience with the Federal Railroad Administration. His combination of regulatory and direct operations experience will be a tremendous asset to NCTD as the agency continues to transition to direct COASTER and SPRINTER operations and push forward with a zero-emission rail fleet.
