Lane Transit District selects new general manager, CEO
Louis Krauss
Jameson Auten has been chosen to be the new general manager and CEO of the Lane Transit District.
The Lane Transit District board of directors unanimously voted Wednesday to hire Auten.
Auten comes to Lane County from the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, where he served as deputy CEO and chief operating officer. He will begin serving in his new role in early November.
“We are excited to have a nationally recognized transit leader of Jameson’s caliber accept LTD’s top job,” Caitlin Vargas, president of the transit district's board of directors, said in a news release. “All of us serving on the board of directors look forward to his arrival as we chart the path for the district to move forward to provide the transit service our communities need and deserve.”
Auten’s hiring comes after a five-month national search. He will replace interim general manager Mark Johnson, who will stay with the district but will resume his previous position as assistant general manager. Johnson filled the interim position after Aurora Jackson, who had led the transit district for six years, resigned in August 2021.
“I am honored and humbled to be selected to lead LTD by the board of directors," Auten said in the release. "LTD enjoys a national reputation for innovation and collaboration. I look forward to building relationships with LTD employees and with community members so that together we identify opportunities to implement right-sized mobility solutions that connect our communities.”
In 20 years, Auten has held a variety of leadership positions with the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority and with the Greater Richmond Transit System. He also serves on the board of directors for the American Public Transportation Association. Auten has a master's degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and a bachelor’s degree from California University of Pennsylvania.
Contact reporter Louis Krauss at lkrauss@registerguard.com, call 541-521-2498 or follow on Twitter @louiskraussnews.