Change of command expected for monorail system

Stephen Curran

Monday, July 11, 2005 | 9:19 a.m.

A high-ranking Regional Transportation Commission official is expected to step down next week to run the Las Vegas Monorail, the RTC and monorail company officials confirmed Friday.

Curtis Myles, the RTC's deputy general manager, is expected to become president of the monorail company on July 18, replacing current chief executive and Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson, who is expected to step into a consulting role, monorail board member Terry Murphy said.

The leadership change comes as the nonprofit Las Vegas Monorail Company is expected to merge with for-profit operations arm Transit Systems Management, a separate entity created to oversee construction of the $650 million system, Murphy said.

The move, finalized Friday afternoon, will also help the monorail company shift its focus from building and designing to successfully running the privately funded system, she said.

It was too early to speculate about Myles' long-term plans for the system, Murphy added.

"The only real change will be a new president," she said. "I think Curtis will bring a fair amount of energy and excitement to the business."

Gibson is expected to leave later this summer after what officials quoted in a monorail company statement called "a gradual transition period." He has said that he planned to leave at the end Transit Systems Management's contract, which ends this summer. The company had been contracted to get the monorail up and running.

TSM President Cam Walker is also expected to step down, according to the statement.

Monorail spokesman Todd Walker called the change "a great opportunity" but referred further questions to Murphy.

RTC officials on Friday had not yet named a replacement for Myles, who joined the agency in 2002 after a stint as assistant director at McCarran International Airport, RTC spokeswoman Sue Christiansen said.

His achievements at the RTC include the implementation of the Metropolitan Area Express system and overseeing plans to bring double-decker buses to Las Vegas, Christiansen said.

"He's been very successful here in his position, and will probably do well in his new position," she said.

Myles, 42, holds bachelor's and master's degrees in economics and has helped manage different transportation organizations for more than 19 years, Christiansen said.

Wall Street analysts have cited lower-than-expected ridership aboard the monorail as one of the company's chief concerns. Bond analyst Moody's downgraded $455 million in outstanding bonds to the higher-risk bond category and have urged monorail officials to raise ticket prices to offset the ridership, a move board members have said was not being considered.

Roughly 900,000 passengers boarded the monorail in May, about 30,000 riders a day, according to company statistics.