§334.065, Florida Statutes – Center for Urban Transportation Research
- There is established at the University of South Florida the Florida Center for Urban Transportation Research
- The center shall be a continuing resource for the Legislature, the Department of Transportation, local governments, the nation’s metropolitan regions, and the private sector in the area of urban transportation research
- An advisory board shall be created to periodically and objectively review and advise the center concerning its research program
CUTR Advisory Board Materials
The agendas and meeting materials are located here.
2021 CUTR Advisory Board

Ram Kancharla
Biography
Ram Kancharla is Vice President of Planning and Development for Florida’s largest port. For three decades, he has overseen Port Tampa Bay’s capital improvements, strategic planning, economic development, capital resource management, and inter-agency coordination and outreach at the state and federal level. He has overseen $1.5 billion in capital projects and secured more than $600 million in external funding.
Kancharla has a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of South Florida and is certified by the American Association of Port Authorities as a Professional Port Manager (PPM®). He is an alumnus of Leadership Florida, Leadership Tampa, and represents the port of Tampa on various committees involved in freight movement, intermodal planning, finance, trade, logistics and the maritime industry. Kancharla was appointed by the U.S. Commerce Secretary to serve on the U.S. Department of Commerce Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. He is one of the Miami Herald’s Florida Influencers.
Kancharla is active in the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, Tampa Bay Partnership, Florida Council for Public Private Partnerships, Government Finance Officers Association, Intermodal Association of America Marine Division, and American Association of Port Authorities. He advises or serves on the boards of Floridians for Better Transportation, Economic Club of Tampa Bay, the USC Marshall Center for Global Supply Chain Management Executive Board, as well as the USF Center for Urban Transportation Research. Kancharla was a Global Advisory Council member for Columbia-based Innovation in Logistics Supply Chain and Port Management (LOGPORT), and was a U.S. Maritime Administration Strong Ports focus group member. He is an active Rotarian and serves on several community boards including Feeding America.
CUTR Advisory Board Ex-Officio Members
Ram Kancharla
Biography
Ram Kancharla is Vice President of Planning and Development for Florida’s largest port. For three decades, he has overseen Port Tampa Bay’s capital improvements, strategic planning, economic development, capital resource management, and inter-agency coordination and outreach at the state and federal level. He has overseen $1.5 billion in capital projects and secured more than $600 million in external funding.
Kancharla has a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of South Florida and is certified by the American Association of Port Authorities as a Professional Port Manager (PPM®). He is an alumnus of Leadership Florida, Leadership Tampa, and represents the port of Tampa on various committees involved in freight movement, intermodal planning, finance, trade, logistics and the maritime industry. Kancharla was appointed by the U.S. Commerce Secretary to serve on the U.S. Department of Commerce Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. He is one of the Miami Herald’s Florida Influencers.
Kancharla is active in the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, Tampa Bay Partnership, Florida Council for Public Private Partnerships, Government Finance Officers Association, Intermodal Association of America Marine Division, and American Association of Port Authorities. He advises or serves on the boards of Floridians for Better Transportation, Economic Club of Tampa Bay, the USC Marshall Center for Global Supply Chain Management Executive Board, as well as the USF Center for Urban Transportation Research. Kancharla was a Global Advisory Council member for Columbia-based Innovation in Logistics Supply Chain and Port Management (LOGPORT), and was a U.S. Maritime Administration Strong Ports focus group member. He is an active Rotarian and serves on several community boards including Feeding America.
Former CUTR Advisory Board Members
First | Last | Title | Agency |
Jose | Abreu | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Danny | Alvarez | Miami-Dade Transit | |
Thomas F. | Barry Jr | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
John H. | Beck | Beck Barrios & Malaney | |
Michael | Blaylock | Jacksonville Transportation Authority | |
Jim | Boxold | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Roosevelt | Bradley | Miami-Dade Transit | |
Carol | Browner | Secretary | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
Colleen | Castille | Secretary | Florida Department of Community Affairs; Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
Thaddeus | Cohen | Secretary | Florida Department of Community Affairs |
Chester | Colby | Miami-Dade Transit | |
Don | Crane | Floridians for Better Transportation | |
Mike | Dew | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Dane | Eagle | Secretary | Florida Department of Economic Opportunity |
Ann | Fandozzi | vRide, Inc. | |
John | Forney | Raymond James & Associates Inc./United Insurance Holdings Company | |
Katherine | Frazier | Florida Transportation Commission | |
James T. | Hargrett | Senator | |
T. Wallace | Hawkes III | URS Corporation | |
James | Holton | Florida Transportation Commission | |
Sonny | Holtzman | The Holtzman Group | |
Arthur | Kennedy | Florida Transportation Commission/Floridians for Better Transportation | |
David | Kerr | Florida Transportation Commission | |
Stephanie | Kopelousos | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Ken | Lawson | Florida Department of Economic Opportunity | |
Norman | Mansour | Commercial Real Estate | |
Maracos | Marchena | Florida Transportation Commission | |
Jon | Martz | Enterprise Holdings | |
William H. | McDaniel | URS Corporation | |
Darrick | McGhee | Interim Executive Director | Florida Department of Economic Opportunity |
Gerhard | Meisels | Provost | University of South Florida |
James | Murley | Secretary | Florida Department of Community Affairs |
Bob | O'Malley | Vice President for Government Affairs | Brightline Trains |
Jesse | Panuccio | Executive Director | Florida Department of Economic Opportunity |
Thomas | Pelham | Secretary | Florida Department of Community Affairs |
Ananth | Prasad | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Cissy | Proctor | Executive Director | Florida Department of Economic Opportunity |
Manuel | Rose | Florida Transportation Commission | |
Teresa | Sarnoff | FTC | |
William | Sadowski | Secretary | Florida Department of Community Affairs |
Jim | Sebesta | Senator | Florida Transportation Commission |
Steve | Seibert | Secretary | Florida Department of Community Affairs |
Linda Loomis | Shelley | Secretary | Florida Department of Community Affairs |
William V. | Sheppard | LPA Group | |
Robert E. | Skinner Jr. | Transportation Research Board | |
Michael | Sole | Secretary | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
David | Stamps | Provost | University of South Florida |
Jon | Steverson | Secretary | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
David B. | Struhs | Secretary | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
Denver | Stutler | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Thomas | Tighe | Provost | University of South Florida |
Kevin J. | Thibault | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Herschel T. | Vinyard | Secretary | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
Joseph | Waggoner | Executive Director | Tampa-Hillsborough County Expressway Authority |
Ben | Watts | Secretary | Florida Department of Transportation |
Virginia | Wetherell | Secretary | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
Jack | Wilson | The Wilson Company |