Darrell E. Johnson is the Chief Executive Officer of the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), leading an agency of 1,400 dedicated professionals delivering sustainable transportation solutions for Orange County’s 3.2 million residents.

Guided by OCTA’s 17-member Board of Directors, Mr. Johnson oversees an annual budget of approximately $2 billion and provides strategic leadership for the planning, financing, and delivery of Orange County’s transportation network, including freeway, street and rail improvements, countywide bus and paratransit service, regional rail, express lanes, active transportation, and environmental programs.

Since becoming CEO in 2013, Mr. Johnson has maintained balanced budgets, strengthened the agency’s long-term financial outlook, secured billions of dollars in competitive state and federal funding, and continued delivering major transportation improvements while ensuring OCTA’s fiscal stability.

Under his leadership, the agency has optimized the use of Measure M, the county’s voter-approved half-cent sales tax for transportation improvements, expanded innovative funding partnerships, advanced nationally recognized environmental mitigation and water-quality programs, and accelerated the transition to a zero-emission bus fleet.

Mr. Johnson has also led the modernization of Orange County’s transit system with a focus on safety, reliability and the overall passenger experience to meet evolving travel demands. OCTA has implemented a new electronic fare payment system, provides free fares for youth and community college students, and continues to grow community-based and special-event transit services.

On a broader scale, Mr. Johnson represents OCTA on matters of local, state, and national policy pertaining to successful transportation program planning, financing, and delivery. He serves on the boards of the Self-Help Counties Coalition, Mobility 21, and the Orange County Business Council.

Mr. Johnson lives in Rancho Santa Margarita and is married with two children.

Jennifer L. Bergener is the Deputy Chief Executive Officer for the Orange County Transportation Authority.

As Deputy CEO, Bergener works directly with CEO Darrell E. Johnson in advancing efforts to fulfill OCTA’s mission of keeping Orange County moving with a balanced and sustainable transportation system. She also helps oversee the agency’s more than 1,300 employees and an annual budget of $1.4 billion.

Bergener is a transportation industry veteran with diversified experience in programming, finance, project development and delivery, as well as government affairs. She began her career at Amtrak where she provided project development and cost controls and she also worked at the San Mateo County Transit District as a grant and program writer.

For the past 18 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. She also served as the Managing Director for LOSSAN, which is the managing agency for the state-supported, Amtrak-operated Pacific Surfliner intercity passenger rail service.

Bergener is married with three sons and lives in Villa Park.