Help shape the future of California’s mobility at this year’s 61st Annual Fall Conference & Expo.
By Arianna Smith
Managing Editor
Transit California
Preparations are officially finalized for the California Transit Association’s flagship gathering—the 61st Annual Fall Conference & Expo, taking place October 28–30, 2026, in beautiful Monterey, California! Hosted by Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST)—APTA’s 2025 Outstanding Public Transit System of the Year—this year’s event is presented by Accenture and offers attendees the opportunity to learn about new fleet technologies, dive into legislative trends, and network with colleagues from across the state. Here is your essential guide to what’s in store at this year’s conference.
Our full agenda is now available! Read ahead to learn about late-breaking updates to this year’s signature event.
Transit Leadership on Display
The Association is proud to feature a full roster of keynote speakers.
In the General Session and Keynote Address, former U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta will host a keynote conversation on leadership and public service, moderated by Scott Shafer, KQED’s Senior Politics Correspondent and host of Political Breakdown. The conversation will feature a leader whose career reflects a lifelong commitment to service, leadership, and the future of public policy. Panetta is known for his bipartisan approach and commitment to public service as he served across the highest levels of federal government. He is Co-founder of the Panetta Institute for Public Policy, located at the nearby California State University Monterey Bay campus (formerly Fort Ord, where Secretary Panetta was stationed as a U.S. Army Officer), and he continues to direct the Institute’s many programs and study opportunities.
David Zipper, transportation writer & co-host of the Look Both Ways podcast, will host the Opening Keynote Address, where he will explore the questions about autonomous vehicle use and how cities can prepare. He will explain how autonomous vehicles may expand personal mobility and revitalize neighborhoods, or they may bring mayhem to urban streets and turbocharge congestion. Zipper studies and provides commentary for intersections amongst transportation, cities, and technology. He has published over 250 stories in outlets including Bloomberg, The Atlantic, Slate, and The Financial Times. He was previously a Senior Fellow at the MIT Mobility Initiative and the Managing Director for Smart Cities.
Jarrett Walker will lead a workshop on how transit agencies can successfully navigate difficult service decisions required by funding uncertainty, with Board members in mind, who want to understand the options and consequences. Jarrett Walker, PhD, is an international consultant in public transit network design and policy and specializes in bus network design.
You Can’t Miss the Concurrent Session Panels
We received nearly one hundred panel submissions for this year’s twenty concurrent sessions. These sessions are organized around five core tracks: Management & Leadership; Policy, Innovation & Customer Experience; Operations; Maintenance; and Community Benefits. Each session provides about an hour of moderated panel presentations followed by audience Q&A. The popular concurrent session panels will follow last year’s format, with four blocks of interactive breakout sessions scheduled on Thursday and Friday.
For a full list of panel titles, descriptions, and featured presenters, please see the agenda here.
Exciting Add-Ons & Events
The conference provides many other hands-on learning and networking experiences:
Small Operators Awards Lunch: Taking place Wednesday, October 28, this GMV-sponsored event honors excellence and innovation among our state’s small transit providers. Emceed by new Small Ops Committee Chair Christy Wegener of the Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority, this event will include remarks from Anthony Serna, Deputy Secretary of the California State Transportation Agency, and will honor small operators in the categories of Transit Professional of the Year, Transit Agency of the Year, the Transit Innovation Award, and the Distinguished Service Award. Tickets can be purchased for $100 as an add-on to the main registration. Learn more and register here.
Host Agency Technical Tours: Hosted by Monterey-Salinas Transit on Thursday afternoon, attendees can participate in one of three special technical "tech" tours highlighting MST's Mobility Services Center in Salinas, SURF! Bus Rapid Transit infrastructure construction along the iconic Highway 1, or contactless payment systems based on open loop transactions. Attendees can choose between the three tours and can register for at the Monterey-Salinas Transit host table located next to the registration desk in the Serra Lobby.
Pre-Conference Training Courses: The Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) is offering two concurrent courses led by CTE engineering staff. Each course includes interactive instruction, course materials, and opportunities for participant Q&A. Participants may earn 3 continuing education hours through self-certification. Those who complete the course will receive a Certificate of Completion within 14 days. Choose between Zero-Emission Bus 101 to learn the fundamentals of deploying battery-electric and fuel cell electric buses, or Hydrogen for Transit to gain a comprehensive introduction to hydrogen as a transportation fuel and the role of fuel cell technology in public transit. These courses require separate registration and fees. Learn more and register for either course here.
Transit Student Research Posters: Undergraduate and graduate students in transit-related fields are participating in a new, special Student Poster Session during the Welcome Reception & Expo, providing students with a unique opportunity to share their work with transit agency leaders, transportation professionals, and industry partners from across California.
Registration and Hotel Information
Full-day conference passes are $725 for members/$975 for non-members, and single-day passes are $600 for members/$800 for non-members.
Attendees can register for full price up to the day of the event; there will be onsite registration! Same-day onsite registrants will pay $825 as members/$1,075 for non-members for full conference passes, and $700 as members/$900 for non-members for single-day passes.
The 15th Annual Jim Ditch Classic Golf Tournament will take place on Tuesday, October 27, the day before the conference begins at Monterey’s Laguna Seca Golf Ranch. We are excited to report that this year’s tournament is full and all sponsorships have been sold.
Keep watching your email and the Association’s social media accounts (X, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky) for more details to be announced.
For general information on this event, please contact: Maria Barajas, maria@caltransit.org (916) 446-4656.