ACES Mobility Coalition Members at the Center of Autonomous Transit Conversation at 2026 AV and Public Transport Conference

The future of autonomous public transportation will take center stage in San Francisco later this week as the ACES Mobility Coalition and its members play a key role at the Eighth Annual Conference on Autonomous Vehicles and Public Transport, hosted by AV America and supported by Global Mass Transit.

The conference has evolved from a forward-looking discussion about autonomy into one of the industry’s most important executive forums, reflecting the movement to scalable, real-world deployment. That evolution mirrors the mission of the Coalition itself: advancing shared, autonomous, connected, and electric mobility through practical deployments, policy leadership, and cross-sector collaboration.

Across both days of the conference, ACES Mobility Coalition members will be on stage shaping the conversation around some of the most pressing questions facing transit agencies and cities today - public trust, workforce transformation, safety, accessibility, infrastructure, and the path to Level 4 automation and beyond. These sessions go beyond theory, highlighting real deployments, federally supported initiatives, and lessons learned from agencies already integrating autonomous technologies into public transportation systems.

This strong ACES Mobility Coalition presence reflects the Coalition’s growing role as a convener of transit agencies, public sector leaders, technology providers, and policy experts working together to solve first- and last-mile challenges and expand mobility options. For Coalition members, this conference offers a unique opportunity to connect with peers who are not just planning for the future, but actively building it.

The event is taking place January 28–29, 2026 at the Marines’ Memorial Club & Hotel in San Francisco, and there’s still time for Coalition members to register, attend, and be part of one of the most substantive conversations on autonomous transit in North America.

📌 Quick Reference: ACES Mobility Coalition Members on the Agenda

Day 1 – January 28, 2026

• Opening Keynote: The State of Autonomous Transit in 2026

  - Greer Johnson Gillis, Senior Vice President & Chief Infrastructure and Development Officer, Jacksonville Transportation Authority, and ACES Mobility Coalition President and Board Chair

  - Toby McGuire, Chief Revenue Officer, Beep

  - Moderator: Joe Iacobucci, Vice President of Transit Innovation, Atlanta Beltline

  
  

• Session 3: Transit Agency / Operator Perspective

  - Jim Derwinski, CEO, Metra, and ACES Mobility Coalition Vice President and Vice Chair

  - Tim Haile, Executive Director, Contra Costa Transportation Authority, and ACES Mobility Coalition Past President and Chair

  - Dinero Washington, CEO, SporTran

  - Moderator: Scott Belcher, Executive Director, ACES Mobility Coalition

  
  

• Session 5: AV Safety in Practice — Testing for New Mobility

  - Sarah Catz, Researcher/Lecturer, UC Irvine Institute of Transportation Studies

  
  

• Session 6: Case Studies and New Initiatives

  - Joe Iacobucci, Vice President of Transit Innovation, Atlanta Beltline

  - Kim Menefee, Executive Director, Cumberland County Improvement District

  - Fabio Tylim, Vice President Global Business Development and Sales, Guident Corp.

  - Seth Wainer, Program Director, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

  - Moderator: Joshua Schank, Partner, InfraStrategies

  
  

• Session 7: AI, Autonomy, and the Future Transit Workforce

  - Douglas Brauer, Dean of Engineering & Industry, Florida State College at Jacksonville

  - Stanley E. Young, Chief Engineer for Innovative Mobility, National Laboratory of the Rockies

  - Moderator: Scott Belcher, Executive Director, ACES Mobility Coalition

Day 2 – January 29, 2026

• Session 9: Next-Gen Automated Public Transit

  - Cemre Kavvasoglu, Product Management Director, North America, ADASTEC

  
  

• Session 11: AVs & Public Acceptance — Cross-Sector Strategies for Success

  - Tim Haile, Executive Director, Contra Costa Transportation Authority and ACES Mobility Coalition Past President and Chair

  - Moderator: Katelyn Magney-Miller, Communications Director, Partners for Automated Vehicle Education (PAVE)

  
  

• Session 12: Co-Designing Accessibility for Inclusive Automated Mobility

  - Danielle Elkins, Deputy Executive Director, Planning, Programs, and Policy, Contra Costa Transportation Authority

  
  

Moving the Industry Forward

ACES Mobility Coalition members aren’t just participating—they’re helping define how shared autonomous mobility technology is responsibly integrated into public transportation systems nationwide. If you’re an ACES Mobility Coalition member or considering joining the Coalition, this conference is a prime opportunity to engage with the leaders shaping what comes next.