President Donald Trump has nominated Thelma Drake to lead the Federal Transit Administration, the agency that provides funding and policy to local public transit systems, including buses, subways, light rail and ferries.
But her appointment comes at a time when transit funding is under siege from the Trump administration. His 55-page infrastructure plan was released Monday and transit wasn't even mentioned in the executive summary.
A former congresswoman and state delegate, Drake is the city of Norfolk’s assistant director of transportation and has lobbied for the city at the General Assembly since 2015.
Drake will still have to go through a confirmation process — the FTA has not had a confirmed administrator since January 2014. The Administrator oversees 3,000 transit agencies nationwide, a $12 billion budget and 550 employees.
