Get to Know Lesley Lowe, Transportation’s New Executive Director
Lesley Lowe joined Stanford Transportation in February as its new executive director. She brings deep industry knowledge, having spent 10 years at the university, most recently serving as director of Transportation and Environmental Planning in the Land Use and Environmental Planning Department.
A previous milestone for Lesley was helping to manage the Junipero Serra Boulevard (JSB) Traffic Calming project through its final design. Years in the making, the project has successfully slowed traffic by 15 mph and made the heavily trafficked residential portion between Campus Drive East and Stanford Avenue safer for bicyclists, pedestrians, and drivers.
We can thank Lesley in part for JSB's calming measures, including skinny neon traffic channelizers, electric beacons, median landscaping, and chicanes (pronounced shuh·kaynz), which she explained are serpentine curves that narrow the road to slow vehicles as they navigate.
Lesley also represented Stanford in supporting the Caltrain 2040 Long Range Service Vision, including the electrification project, which has significantly increased ridership.
Ballot Measure D is another of her favorite projects. The Quarry Road transit connection will provide buses with a direct route between the Palo Alto Transit Center, El Camino Real, and Quarry Road. “Not only will it streamline the Marguerite shuttle system, save operational costs, and reduce commuter times by five to eight minutes per trip, it will also improve bicycle and pedestrian safety,” said Lesley. And it’s not just a big win for the university. It’s also a win for the region because riders on SamTrans, AC Transit, and VTA will also enjoy reduced commute times.
In her new role, Lesley has already dug into a new parking study, which will examine how the university’s parking system can be more efficient and effective for today’s needs and future growth opportunities. Lesley is also excited to lead Stanford in supporting the VTA mobility hub study at the Palo Alto Transit Center, which dovetails with the Quarry Road/Measure D work.
Now, onto the fun stuff! Lesley, a mother of two, enjoys snowboarding in Bear Valley and has run in 18 marathons, including her favorite, the Boston Marathon. She plays in a co-ed “Old Sunday Stumblers” soccer league with her husband, Stephen. She also coaches her fourteen-year-old daughter’s track team. (Anyone else feel like a slacker?)
Chicanes on Junipero Serra Boulevard narrow the road and slow traffic.
In case you’re wondering how Lesley got her start…
While earning a master’s degree in planning at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Lesley tore a tab off the bottom of a flyer advertising an internship with the SLO Transit Authority. Lesley got the internship and spent the summer riding the buses, conducting passenger surveys, and tweaking the stops.
“I loved the piece of figuring out how not only are you trying to get someone from Point A to B but you also have to add in the complexity of human nature. It’s like marrying transportation/travel with psychology and sociology and trying to understand what drives someone to the mode that they’re choosing.”
And voila – a career was born.
