Kimberley Minkel

Kimberley A. Minkel is the Executive Director for the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA). Formerly the Director of Health, Safety, and Environmental Quality. Kimberley A. Minkel started at the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority in October 2002, as its Director of Health, Safety, and Environmental Quality. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Niagara University in 1988 and an MBA from Canisius College in 1995. As director of the Authority’s HSEQ department, she worked to ensure the safety and protection of its workers, riders, the public and the environment. She oversaw the completion of an award winning $13.1 million environmental project for the Buffalo Niagara International Airport that uses wetland treatment technology for treating spent deicing fluid in storm water runoff. She has also co-authored several papers dealing with innovative approaches for managing storm water runoff at airports. The BNIA is the first airport in the United States to use such a process. This project was awarded the Diamond Award in the Environmental Category by the NY branch of the American Council of Engineering Companies and a very prestigious Honor Award by the U.S. national ACEC. She was unanimously selected by the NFTA’s Board of Commissioners to be its new executive director December 28, 2010. As such, she oversees a workforce of approximately 1,550 dedicated employees, with an annual operating budget of $202.3 million. The NFTA operates the Metro Bus and Rail system, which provides approximately 26 million passenger trips per year, the Buffalo and Niagara Falls International Airports and the 1,033 slip Small Boat Harbor. Under her leadership the NFTA earned a coveted Gold Standard award from the Transportation Security Administration for the Authority’s overall high security standards and practices based on a 2013 Baseline Assessment evaluation conducted by the TSA. She is a member of various professional organizations, including the Buffalo Urban Development Corporation’s Board of Directors, Niagara Military Affairs Commission and B.U.I.L.D. She has previously served on the Board of Directors of the Peace Bridge Authority, the City of Niagara Falls N.F.B. Development Corporation and is a 2007 graduate of Leadership Buffalo.