Marian L. Robson

Mrs. Marian Robson is Senior Associate in the Transportation Practice at Global Public Affairs. Previously, she served as Chair and CEO of the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA). Mrs. Robson has over 40 years of senior-level public and private sector transportation experience with the federal government, national and provincial railways, the Canadian port system (including as Chair of the Vancouver Port Corporation), and as a transportation consultant with a national firm.

During her term at the CTA, Mrs. Robson chaired panels on major files in all modes, in which Agency decisions had significant financial, operational or human rights implications for the parties. One such file was the case of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities (CCD) versus VIA Rail concerning the accessibility of newly-purchased passenger rail cars. The Agency found in favour of CCD, the case went to the Supreme Court which upheld the Agency decision. Mrs. Robson also directed the preparation and public consultations on Accessibility Codes of Conduct for Airports, Airlines, Railways and Ferries. The Agency worked closely with its Accessibility Advisory Committee in producing these codes of conduct. In 2002, following legislation, she established the Office of Air Travel Complaints Commissioner. The Commissioner was charged with a new program to resolve individual passenger complaints against domestic and international air carriers.

Earlier in her career, Mrs. Robson held senior management positions in British Columbia Railway and Canadian National Railway. She was a Ministerial Assistant to the federal Minister of Transport, gaining a broad knowledge of each mode of transport. Mrs. Robson currently serves as Chair Pacific Chapter, Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport North America (CILTNA), and as Chair of the Vancouver Board of Trade’s Regional Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (RTI).

Mrs. Robson holds a BA, English from the University of Saskatchewan and did post graduate studies in Political Science at the University of British Columbia and at the University of Saskatchewan. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT).

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