Jennifer L. Bergener, a 17-year employee of the transit agency, has been promoted to the job.

ORANGE – The Orange County Transportation Authority has appointed Jennifer L. Bergener, a veteran of the agency and the transportation industry, to serve as OCTA’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer.

Bergener, who has served in a variety of management roles at OCTA and most recently as the Chief Operating Officer, takes over for Kenneth G. Phipps, who retired earlier this month after nearly three decades at the transportation agency.

Bergener will work directly with CEO Darrell E. Johnson toward fulfilling OCTA’s mission of keeping Orange County moving through a balanced and sustainable transportation system.

“Jennifer’s experience and skills make her the ideal leader to take on this vital role at OCTA,” CEO Johnson said. “I very much look forward to working with her to continue enhancing Orange County’s transportation network.”

In addition to Deputy CEO, Bergener will continue her role as COO, responsible for all transit operations, including bus operations and maintenance, rail operations, OC Streetcar operations and maintenance, Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor Agency (LOSSAN) oversight, paratransit, microtransit and contracted services.

In her first weeks on the job, Bergener has played a critical role on OCTA’s task force responding to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. She’s helping lead the committee of executives from across divisions, and overseeing enhanced cleaning and continued operations of Orange County’s essential public transit service for those who rely on it.

“I’m honored to take on the challenges of this new role along with our talented OCTA team,” Bergener said. “I’m fortunate to work with so many dedicated people at OCTA driven to delivering transportation solutions for the residents, workers and visitors of Orange County.”

She has more than 20 years of experience as a transit professional, holding a broad range of positions in transportation programming, finance, project development and delivery, as well as governmental affairs.

For the past 17 years, Bergener has been at OCTA serving in roles with increasing responsibility, primarily in rail planning, project and program delivery and new transit services development. In addition, she served as the Managing Director for LOSSAN, which serves as the managing agency for the state-supported, Amtrak-operated Pacific Surfliner intercity passenger rail service.

She started her career at Amtrak, working on project development and cost controls and she also worked at the San Mateo County Transit District as a grant and program writer.

In the past several years, OCTA has embarked on an effort to reinvent transit service in Orange County through a number of initiatives including redesigning the bus system, redeploying resources to the core of the county and introducing local transit options, exploring on-demand transit, enhancing the customer experience through technology, and implementing the OC Streetcar, a light-rail line under construction and set to begin operations in 2022.

Bergener is married with three sons and lives in Villa Park. In her role as Deputy CEO, Bergener will help oversee more than 1,300 employees and an annual budget of more than $1.5 billion.

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