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Yesterday, Caltrain announced Peninsula Rail Program (PRP) Director Robert Doty is leaving the commuter-rail agency effective Jan. 21 to take on a position as vice president and director of high-speed rail programs for engineering firm HNTB Corp.

At HNTB, Doty will work on a variety of projects, including Florida’s high-speed rail program. Under an agreement with Caltrain and the California High Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA), he will not work on the California Peninsula section of the state’s high-speed rail program for one year.

Created in 2008 by Caltrain and CHSRA, the PRP was designed to “develop mutually beneficial programs on the Caltrain right of way,” according to a Caltrain prepared statement. As director since PRP’s inception, Doty has helped oversee preliminary design and environmental work for the Peninsula’s high-speed rail line. He reports to both Caltrain Executive Director Michael Scanlon and CHSRA Chief Executive Officer Roelof van Ark.

“We created the PRP to take full advantage of Bob Doty and his unique experience and expertise across the globe in designing and delivering large-sale rail projects,” Scanlon said. “His departure means we will rethink the structure and the personnel to go forward with high-speed rail.”

From 2003 to 2008, Doty served as Caltrain’s director of rail transportation, engineering and construction.

One of Doty’s biggest Caltrain career highlights: helping the agency obtain a waiver from the Federal Railroad Administration that will enable the agency to implement a signal and control system to improve safety and performance, as well as operate high-speed trains on the Peninsula.

Doty has more than 40 years of experience in the rail transportation industry, holding stints as project manager for system-wide works for the U.K.’s Channel Tunnel Rail Link Section 1, project manager and chief negotiator for the Korean high-speed rail project, director of systems engineering for the Taipei Rapid Transit System and manager of train operations for Bay Area Rapid Transit.

HNTB currently has contracts to provide consulting services for high-speed rail projects throughout the country. In California, the firm is designing the Peninsula segment of California’s high-speed rail project.