The Atlanta Regional Commission today announced that Gwo-Wei Torng has been named Senior Managing Director of Transportation following a national search.

In this role, Torng will be responsible for leading the agency’s transportation planning staff and overseeing the development of the long-range Metropolitan Transportation Plan, which defines the Atlanta region’s strategic multimodal transportation vision and investment priorities.

Torng comes to ARC after 11 years at the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), where he served as Director of the Office of Mobility Innovation. In that role, he oversaw FTA’s mobility research portfolio, which included mobility on demand and transit automation research.

“Gwo-Wei is a highly innovative leader with decades of experience in the transportation sector. We look forward to the insights, ideas, and energy he will bring to the Atlanta region,” said Anna Roach, ARC Executive Director & CEO.

Torng, a native of Taiwan, holds a Ph.D. in Urban, Technological and Environmental Planning from the University of Michigan and an undergraduate degree in transportation engineering from National Chiao Tung University in Taiwan.

Prior to joining FTA, he worked in the private sector as a consultant focusing on IT project management, systems engineering and deployment for public transportation. He began his career as a transportation planner at the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments in Detroit.

“Metro Atlanta is a vibrant, dynamic place that provides a terrific canvas to explore innovative ideas that can improve transportation for all of us,” he said. “One of my guiding principles is the idea that every trip matters. Life is better when we make trips easier, more care-free. I can’t wait to work with the highly talented team at ARC to improve quality of life in this world-class region.”

Torng succeeds John Orr, who will be retiring early next year after a long and distinguished career at ARC.