NEW ORLEANS — Today marks five years since employees of the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (RTA) reported for their first day of work under full public management, following a decision by the RTA Board of Commissioners to return the agency to public operation. Since that transition on December 19, 2019, the RTA has demonstrated that a publicly run transit system—guided by community voice, transparency, and local accountability—can deliver strong financial stewardship, safer operations, and meaningful improvements for riders, workers, and visitors alike. 

Founded in 1979, the RTA has long played a vital role in keeping New Orleans moving. Following Hurricane Katrina, the agency operated under private management for more than a decade as the city worked to stabilize essential services. In 2019, after an independent management study, the RTA Board made the deliberate decision to return the agency to public management, restoring local governance, transparency, and accountability. 

Over the past five years, the RTA has delivered measurable results that reflect the benefits of public management, including: 

• Invested in the local workforce by hiring more than 800 employees, 27 of which were newly created positions, thus strengthening the city’s economy through competitive wages and tax contributions. 
• Five consecutive years of clean audit opinions and strong bond ratings, reinforcing confidence in the RTA’s financial stewardship. 
• More than $170 million secured in competitive federal grants to modernize fleets, facilities, and rider amenities. 

“Five years of public management have shown what is possible when local leadership, transparent decision-making, and community voice guide our transit system,” said RTA CEO Lona Edwards Hankins. “We’re not just moving people, we’re building connections, opportunities, and a stronger New Orleans.” 

Public management has enabled the RTA to launch and execute a comprehensive capital program focused on reliability, accessibility, and rider experience. Investments to date include new buses and paratransit vehicles, hybrid fleet expansion, two new ferries, the Canal Street Ferry Terminal, and ADA accessibility improvements along the historic St. Charles Streetcar Line. 

Looking ahead, the RTA is advancing transformational projects that support the city’s long-term growth and equity goals, including Bus Rapid Transit connections linking New Orleans East, Algiers, and downtown; a 30-year Streetcar Modernization roadmap; expanded passenger transfer hubs; fare technology upgrades; and the development of the Downtown Transit Center. 

Beyond infrastructure, public management has deepened the RTA’s connection to the communities it serves through enhanced outreach, monthly riders advisory committee,  fare-free initiatives, youth and workforce programs, public art, and civic engagement efforts such as Roll to the Polls, ensuring transit decisions are informed by the people who rely on the system every day. 

“Five years of public management has strengthened transparency, accountability, and performance across the organization,” said Fred Neal Jr., Chairman of the RTA Board of Commissioners. “The decision to return the RTA to public control was about building a system that serves riders first, safeguards public dollars, and positions transit as a cornerstone of New Orleans’economic future.”  

As New Orleans prepares for a new chapter of civic leadership, the RTA’s five-year record under public management underscores the value of transparency, accountability, and community-centered decision making in delivering essential public services. The RTA remains committed to working collaboratively with city leadership, community partners, and riders to ensure our transit system continues to support economic development and quality of life for all New Orleanians. 

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The New Orleans Regional Transit Authority is a sub-division of the State of Louisiana which is operated by an independent Board of Commissioners that serves Orleans, Jefferson, and St. Bernard Parishes. The agency operates car and passenger ferries, fixed-route buses, Paratransit, and streetcar services.