Electric Bus Procurement, Planning & Funding

Hallie Liao is the Deputy General Manager at Shenzhen Bus Group. Hallie is in charge of international business development, branding, procurement and advertisement. Hallie is passionate about public policy and public transportations role in creating a greener urban environment, particularly after Shenzhen Bus Group became the first fully and largest electric-powered public vehicle operator in the world. Prior to joining Shenzhen Bus Group, Hallie had worked for the United Nations Development Programme, McKinsey and other international organizations in cross border development projects across the United States, China, Latin America and South East Asia. Hallie holds an B.A in political science and economics from Columbia University.

With over 25 years of unparalleled expertise in the dynamic realm of public transport, he stands as a titan in the industry. Currently serving as a Senior Advisor to the prestigious UITP, his role as Head of Eurasia and Senior Advisor to the Academy places him at the forefront of innovation and excellence.

His journey commenced in 1999 with METRO ISTANBUL, where he embarked on a transformative path through various roles including Signaling Engineer, Maintenance Planning Expert, and Software Development Engineer. With each position, he left an indelible mark of proficiency and foresight.

Elevating to the helm as the Managing Director of Kayseri Transportation, he orchestrated a symphony of success, overseeing the seamless integration of diverse transport modalities. Under his visionary leadership, the company not only revolutionized rail systems but expanded its purview to encompass bus operations, bike-sharing initiatives, and pioneering smart traffic management systems.

A luminary in the field, he has graced numerous executive boards and chaired pivotal divisions within UITP, contributing significantly to shaping global transport policies. His presidency at TÜRSİD and vice presidency at ARUS underscore his commitment to advancing rail transportation in Turkey and beyond.

Not content with mere professional accolades, he pursued academic excellence culminating in a Ph.D. in Business Administration. His groundbreaking thesis on the nexus between formalization and stakeholder satisfaction in transport systems is a testament to his intellectual prowess and dedication to advancing the industry.

Beyond his professional endeavors, he remains deeply entrenched in the academic and research spheres, serving on advisory boards and steering committees of esteemed institutions. His multifaceted contributions reflect a tireless pursuit of excellence and a relentless drive to reshape the future of public transport.

Julián del Olmo has developed his entire professional career in the field of Transport Public at EMT Madrid. He is Manager of the Rolling Stock Planning Department at Empresa Municipal de Transportes de Madrid S.A. (EMT). Julian is the responsible, coordinated with the transport director for bus acquisition policy of the company. His area is responsible for fleet renewal policy, In 2017 and 2018 EMT has acquired: 400 CNG new buses, 18 electric minibuses, 15 electric standard buses and he is currently the main decisor for a tender process for the purchase of 35 new electric buses.

Julián manages the prototype and demonstrative department, where EMT tests the consumption, emissions and efficiency of all new buses as well as prototypes provided by the manufacturers.

Mr. James Wang is the National Chief Scientist Communications in China Transit Science (CAST); founder of Shared Mobility Laboratory, an ambassador of UITP & a representative of Busworld Foundation, bus specifications, operations & maintenance specialist of ADB, editor-in-chief of China Bus & Coach Yearbook, an academic committee member of CUPTA of CCES & China Highway Society Bus Branch, transit scholar of Chongqing Jiaotong University.

He has published a series of books and articles on bus & transit industry in Chinese.

全国公共交通学科首席科学传播专家、共享出行实验室创建人；国际公共交通联盟（UITP）亲善大使、世界客车博览基金会（Busworld Foundation）中国代表、亚洲开发银行（ADB）巴士技术规格、运营与维护专家、《中国巴士与客车》年鉴系列主编、中国土木工程学会巴士快速交通技术推广委员会专家，中国城市公共交通分会和中国道路运输协会客运分会理事、中国公路学会客车分会专家，重庆交通大学交通学者。

已出版系列中文巴士与公共交通专业图书与论文。

Josep is Partner and Director of Moov, a mobility and transport consultancy. He is a Civil Engineer by training and has developed his professional career to date in transport and sustainable mobility, at advisory, operational, and executive management levels. As a consultant and designer, Josep has undertaken transport infrastructure projects, Urban Mobility Plans, service usage assessments, urban and interurban public transport network modelling, traffic and parking demand studies.

As a service operator, Josep developed the technical office of the Transvia Group and was Managing Director of the Municipal Transport Company of València (EMT), where he led an intense process of transformation turning the organisation into a mobility management company, focused on efficiency, digitalisation and with a completely transformed network. As a result, EMT València service usage grew by 10%, becoming public transport company of the year in Spain in 2017 and awarded one of the best 50 companies to work for in Spain according to Forbes in 2018.

Mr Jaarsma is a Public Transport Expert with more than 25 years of professional experience. He has worked as a self-employed consultant for Modasti Consulting since August 2016. Between 2013-2015, he worked for Go! Groen ov (a Dutch start-up which aimed to become the first fossil-free public transport operator in the world). Before that time, he worked for three consultancies in the field of passenger transport policies. He started his career with working for two public transport operators and the Municipality of Amsterdam.

Mr Jaarsma currently specializes in four fields: (i) Decarbonization of Transport (including electrification of railways and bus systems); (ii) Public Transport Visions (including master plans and funding strategies); (iii) Public Transport Networks (including business cases, modalities, and frequencies), and (iv) Public Transport Services (including digitalization, liberalization, and tenders).

As a strategic and innovative thinker, Mr Jaarsma supports clients in their decision-making processes. He has broad insight into global developments in the transport sector and he has practical experience with public transport policies in the European Union (EU) and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. He is experienced with public transport investment plans, operating expenditure plans and with clean vehicle technologies.

Mr Jaarsma has project experience with Commuter Rail, Metro, Light Rail Transit (LRT), Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), regular buses (diesel, gas, hydrogen, electric) and Mobility as a Service (MaaS). His recent project experience involves projects in Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Netherlands, Turkey, UAE and UK. He holds a master’s degree in urban and transport planning from the University of Amsterdam.

Based at Volvo Buses’ Headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden. Since 2017 Stefan is supporting regions and cities to transform to electric bus traffic. This includes route analysis, charging strategy, stakeholder engagement, project planning, zone management and all aspects from an operator’s perspective in the transition to electric bus traffic including sustainability.

Prior to joining Volvo Buses, Stefan spent 23 years working at Ericsson, whereof 6 years based in Asia. Stefan has a Master of Science – Industrial Engineering from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden.

Chris is the Operations Manager of International Development Department at Shenzhen Bus Group Co., Ltd., which owns the world’s first and largest pure electric bus fleet and taxi fleet. Chris has worked at SZBG in fleet management, employee training, corporate management and international development. Chris’ current objective is to share the company’s knowledge on electric public transportation, and work with other companies to explore the future of a robust, sustainable and customer focused public transportation system.

Darek is a change manager and influencer in the transition to sustainable transport. With over 16 years of industry experience, Darek is a driving force in advocating for decarbonisation of the transport sector with a focus on sustainable and environmentally friendly public transport to improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He delivers insightful advice, hosts impactful training sessions and symposiums.

Darek played a leading role in the decarbonisation of Auckland’s public transport bus and ferry fleets and infrastructure specifications. He led Auckland Transport’s transition to a zero emission bus fleet known as Auckland’s ‘Low Emission Bus Roadmap’ aiming to transition the city’s public transport to zero emission buses by 2035 and low emission ferries by 2040. He chaired the New Zealand Low Emission Bus Working Group tasked with overcoming challenges and removing barriers to earlier adoption of zero emission buses in New Zealand.

Darek now works on accelerating the implementation of sustainable transport solutions in Australia and plays a key role in supporting the transition from diesel to electric and hydrogen fuel cell buses, trains, ferries, their management, operations and charging infrastructure.

Dr. Andreas Rau is a transportation engineer working at TUM Asia Singapore as the Faculty Head and Principal Investigator (Rail, Transport & Logistics). He was Principal Investigator of the Rapid Road Transport Group in TUM CREATE Singapore from 2011 till 2021. His significant research experience contributed in public transport planning, development and implementation workshops and research projects funded by public transport authorities, and education institutes in Germany and Singapore. With a strong academic and teaching background, Dr. Rau was the Founding Director of MSc programmes at TU München and the German Institute of Science and Technology – TUM Asia, Singapore. He is a frequent speaker in seminars, conference and training from all around the world.

Dr. Rau’s research interests are in the area of public transport planning, especially for developing and emerging countries. This stretches from the network planning, the creation of integrated transport chain to the optimization of bus lines. The scheduling of transit lines for buses and trains, from the design of the timetable till the creation of duties and rosters for the drivers are also topics covered by Dr. Rau. Assessment methods for transport infrastructure and policies for a sustainable transport system development are research interests of Dr. Rau as well.

Alok is the CEO & Managing Director of Trans-consult. He is an international expert in public transport operations and management, with specialisation in new technology, artificial intelligence, data analytics, and clean fuel technologies. With 30 years of experience in the industry, Alok has worked with an array of international consultants and leading transport operators such as MTR Corporation Hong Kong and Kowloon Motor Bus Hong Kong.

He is an international expert trainer and a Fellow of Civic Exchange, a Hong Kong-based non-profit independent think tank. He regularly teaches at the University of Hong Kong and serves as a Member of the Transport Policy Committee of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Hong Kong. He has several publications to his credit, including contribution to a book on best practice in railways operations and management.

Alok is a civil engineer and holds post-graduate degrees in transportation engineering and management.

Alok Linkedin

Alok Twitter @alokjainhk