Acting Administrator
Carolyn Flowers is the Acting Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). She joined FTA as Senior Advisor in January 2015 and was appointed FTA Deputy Administrator on April 18, 2016.
Ms. Flowers leads a staff of more than 500 in the Washington, D.C. headquarters office and 10 regional offices throughout the United States, and implementing an annual budget of more than $12 billion. Ms. Flowers’ decades-long career serving in public transit provides the FTA invaluable insight and guidance for delivering its programs, policies and initiatives.
Prior to joining FTA, Ms. Flowers served as Chief Executive Officer/Director of Public Transit for the Charlotte Area Transit System, where she was responsible for countywide bus and rail transit planning and management. She began her career in public transportation with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) in 1993 and for nineteen years served in many capacities in budget, administration and operations at LACMTA. Her last position at LACMTA was as the Chief Operations Officer with responsibility for managing bus operations and Freeway Service Patrol.
Ms. Flowers earned a bachelor’s degree in history and political science and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Management. She has served on a number of professional boards, including co-chairing the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) Reauthorization Task Force, and has received a number of awards for her commitment to advancing public transportation nationwide. She participated in a 2005 international study project for the National Association of Sciences, sponsored by the Eno Foundation for Transportation Studies, as well as the executive development program sponsored by the Eno Center for Transit Leadership.