Dr. Becca Mayers is a Planner at TransLink, where she advances regionally significant active transportation networks and projects across Metro Vancouver. Her work is dedicated to creating safe, connected, and accessible cycling and walking networks that expand transportation choice and improve access to opportunities for everyone.

She works closely with local governments, regional agencies, and non-profit organizations to navigate transportation solutions that support safer and more connected communities. She is leading TransLink’s Major Bikeway Network and Urban Centre Bikeways Action Plan and the Regional Cycling Monitoring Program.

Becca holds a PhD in Community and Regional Planning from the University of British Columbia. Her research focused on the politics of infrastructure investments, urban change, the lived experience of cycling, and equity in community engagement.

She is also the host of the award-winning Dense City podcast, where she translates academic research one article at a time.

Farinaz Rikhtehgaran is the Director of Programs at Better Environmentally Sound Transportation (BEST Mobility). She brings an interdisciplinary background in urban planning and design and environmental gerontology, with a focus on the connections between the built environment, health, and social equity.

Her work spans academia and community-based practice, where she has led and contributed to research and programs focused on accessibility, ageing in place, and inclusive mobility.

Before joining BEST, Farinaz worked at Simon Fraser University’s Gerontology department and at the University of British Columbia on community-engaged research projects.

She is passionate about co-designing community initiatives that support mobility, connection, independence, and well-being.

Lon LaClaire is the General Manager of Engineering Services at the City of Vancouver and is passionate about city building. With approximately 2,200 staff, an annual operating budget of $500 million, and a further $300 million in capital expenditure, he is responsible for the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of the city’s public works infrastructure.

Engineering Services also carries planning and regulatory responsibilities and plays a central role in Vancouver’s day-to-day functioning. Before becoming General Manager, Lon worked in the City’s Transportation Division for more than 20 years, including five years as Director of Transportation.

He completed his undergraduate degree at Concordia University in 1993 and a master’s degree in Transportation Engineering and Structures at the University of Calgary in 1996.

Adam leads UBC’s transportation planning and demand management efforts and oversees the university’s technical involvement in project development for the planned Millennium Line UBC SkyTrain Extension.

Before joining UBC in 2017, Adam worked at TransLink, supporting the development of regional infrastructure plans and projects. He is a Registered Professional Planner, lives in East Vancouver, and commutes by e-bike as much as possible.

Denis Agar is the Executive Director of Movement: Metro Vancouver Transit Riders. He believes expanded public transit can transform cities and help address social, economic, and environmental challenges.

Denis previously worked at TransLink for 10 years, finding ways to make bus routes more useful and reliable. In 2023, he left TransLink to start Movement, modelled on transit-rider organizations in Toronto and New York. Its goal is to build a major organized bloc of transit riders and demonstrate the public support for transit investment.

Andrea Reimer is an Adjunct Professor of Practice at UBC’s School of Public Policy and Global Affairs and was the school’s first Policy Practitioner Fellow. She has been a strong public voice in Vancouver and the region for almost two decades, focusing on green, reconciled, and engaged communities and on making government more accessible to the public.

Andrea began her public work as a community organizer. She was elected to the Vancouver School Board in 2002 and later served three terms on Vancouver City Council. During her decade on Council, she helped lead initiatives connected to sustainability, reconciliation, and community planning.

Her municipal and regional work included housing, transportation, and land-use issues. After leaving municipal politics, Andrea received a Loeb Fellowship at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design, where she studied and taught urban policy and democratic renewal.

Her community service has included board work across civic, financial, and democratic organizations. Her honours include the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Award and the World Green Building Council Chairman’s Award.