Robert Puentes is the Vice President and Director of Brookings Metro.

Previously, he was the President and CEO of the Eno Center for Transportation. Prior to joining Eno, he was a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program where he directed the program’s Metropolitan Infrastructure Initiative. He is currently a non-resident senior fellow with Brookings. Before Brookings, Robert was the director of infrastructure programs at the Intelligent Transportation Society of America.

Robert has worked extensively on a variety of transportation issues, including infrastructure funding and finance, and city and urban planning. He is a frequent speaker to a variety of groups, a regular contributor in newspapers and other media, and has testified before Congressional committees. He holds a master’s degree from the University of Virginia where he served on the Alumni Advisory Board, and was an affiliated professor with Georgetown University’s Public Policy Institute.

Robert serves on a variety of boards including the Shared-Use Mobility Center, UCLA’s Institute of Transportation Studies, and Young Professionals in Transportation. Recent appointments include the Federal Advisory Committee on Transportation Equity, New York State’s 2100 Infrastructure Commission; the Advisory Council of the West Coast Infrastructure Exchange, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Transportation Reinvention Commission; the District of Columbia’s Streetcar Financing and Governance Task Force; the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority’s Technical Advisory Committee; and the Falls Church, Virginia Planning Commission where he lives with his wife and three sons.

Eno Transportation Weekly Articles

Lessons, Learnings, and Legacies: Eno Establishes Downey Fellowship

October 6, 2023 - The Eno Center for Transportation is proud to announce the Mortimer L. Downey Legacy Fellows Program for former and outgoing United States Deputy Secretaries of Transportation.

Driving Change: Advice For The National VMT-Fee Pilot (A Special Excerpt)

July 24, 2023 - A special excerpt from the Eno Center for Transportation's latest research report Driving Change: Advice for the National VMT-Fee Pilot.

Research

Yahoo News|September 25, 2024|Eno Announcements, Funding & Finance, Transit

Success Factors in Private Contracting for Public Transportation

In the dynamic realm of transportation, artificial intelligence (AI) emerges as a pivotal force, revolutionizing how tasks are accomplished and potentials are unlocked. This article delves into the multifaceted role of AI in augmenting human...

Yahoo News|July 24, 2023|Electric Vehicles, Federal Governance, Governance reform, Highways & Streets

Driving Change: Advice For The National VMT-Fee Pilot

The US faces funding challenges for transportation infrastructure due to changing vehicle technology. To address this, a national pilot program for a vehicle miles traveled (VMT) fee is being established. Recommendations include simplicity, scalability, and...

Media Mentions & Commentary

KERA News|May 20, 2024|Infrastructure, Workforce development

Who Pays for Texas Highways?

"'There's this big change that has happened when it comes to this 'user pay' concept, which basically needs to be thrown out the window,' said Robert Puentes of the Eno Center for Transportation, a century-old...

Smart Cities Dive|April 11, 2024|Infrastructure, Workforce development

How Transit Agencies Can Succeed at Outsourcing Operations

“Agencies are going to be having to do things differently,” said Robert Puentes, president and CEO of the Eno Center for Transportation. “This is a real time for innovation and for new ideas and new...