From PAYT Maryland to YPT Baltimore: Where are they now?

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You may not know that YPT Baltimore began as an independent group of ambitious professional transportationists (and fake word enthusiasts), the Professional Association of Young Transportationists in Maryland. The founders knew there were other like-minded professionals out there who’d  enjoy grabbing a drink, networking with peers, and hearing from established and emerging leaders in the transportation industry. To create a new group, they used their free time, put in their own money, and made up a word.

My two or so years with YPT Baltimore began just as PAYT Maryland was transitioning into a local chapter of YPT International. I was able to work with some of the original PAYT Maryland founders whose support and guidance still impacts me today. This blog post serves both to honor the group that laid the groundwork for this chapter to exist, and hopefully to show our members the value of YPT Baltimore in its third year.

Our founding members responded to a brief survey asking them about their job when organizing PAYT, where they work now, and what advice they have for young professionals and students in the transportation industry. Click the link to read their replies.

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Announcing the First Ever YPT Baltimore Strategic Plan!

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by Angie Hernandez, Vice Chair

YPT Baltimore is excited to announce that the chapter will be kicking off our first ever Strategic Plan in 2017! With this exciting announcement, you may be wondering what a Strategic Plan is and why does our chapter need one? Or, you may find yourself wondering; why should I, a well-meaning Baltimore YPT’er care to continue to read this blog post talking about a strategic plan?

The answer to all of these questions in short is that YPT Baltimore is looking to solidify our purpose as a professional organization and distinguish our chapter from the other professional transportation organizations in the area. The strategic plan will formalize our focus over the next year as well as begin to plan strategies to enhance and grow our chapter for years to come. You, as a member of YPT Baltimore, have a voice in planning our organization’s future and the strategic planning effort will provide the platform for your voice to be heard.

At a more detailed level, the Strategic Plan will serve as a short-term guide to ensure consistency in our organization’s purpose and ultimately serve as a road map for future YPT Baltimore endeavors. In addition, the plan will provide guidance for our leadership board to focus on expanding and enhancing our chapter as we grow through 2017 and beyond.

We are looking for participation from all members in defining chapter goals, strategies, and activities to be included in the strategic plan. There will be various opportunities for members to provide input and participate in the development of the Strategic Plan over the next few months. Our Executive Board will be leading an effort to develop a member survey to solicit input on the plan, in addition to hosting a strategic planning meeting, which is tentatively scheduled for February 2017. Stay tuned for more information regarding how to be involved in the strategic planning for YPT Baltimore throughout the New Year.

This plan will not be a success without all of your help and wonderful ideas. Please take some time over the next few weeks to brainstorm some ideas about what our Chapter could be doing differently, better, or even just something that you have been thinking about that our organization could explore together.

“If at first, the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.” – Albert Einstein

Another successful tour with a fellow YPT chapter!

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Amtrak hosted YPT Baltimore yet again, but this time at its Ivy City Maintenance Facility with our neighboring YPT DC chapter. We later found out that the day of our visit happened to be the facility’s 30th birthday!

An amazing and friendly group of Amtrak staff welcomed our group and started the day off with a safety briefing before we outfitted ourselves with hard hats, safety goggles, and ear plugs (a growing fashion trend in the transportation industry!). We were warned by our guides to keep an eye out for moving locomotives, described as “quieter than your neighbor’s Prius.”

We were guided into the maintenance facility where it’s safe to say that the group immediately and simultaneously turned into excited children in a candy store. We walked around, into, and nearly underneath trains, trains, and more trains! It was impressive to witness a mix of old and new equipment and rolling stock, and how both old and new are now outfitted with technology that allows for real-time data collection and quality control.

We can’t recap the whole tour in a single blog post, but welcome our attendees to share their experience in the comments! Also, look forward to a blog post in the Washington Post by an attendee who reports on transportation!

After a delicious lunch from an Ivy City favorite, MGM Roast Beef, we were off to Union Station for a two-fold tour: (1) A look at the station’s past which, like many of us, had an embarrassing 80’s phase, and (2) A discussion on future redevelopment plans for the entire station. If sharing Ivy City’s 30th birthday wasn’t cool enough, we ran into outgoing Amtrak CEO Joe Boardman on his very last day before retirement. He was kind enough to take a photo with the group and thanked us for being engaged in transportation.

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I don’t know how we’re going to top this tour, but we’re sure going to try! That said, take a look at the sidebar on our homepage and click the link to join our chapter’s board! You’ll have the chance to be a part of organizing great events like this for your fellow young professionals in transportation.

Until next time!