Mayor Helena Moreno has moved quickly to put her stamp on New Orleans transit leadership, naming four new members to the board that oversees the Regional Transit Authority and promising a sharper focus on equity and regional cooperation. Her picks, Coleman Adler, Ann Duplessis, Erika Mann and Barbara Major, are slated to replace several commissioners appointed under the previous administration. The nominees still need City Council confirmation before they can officially take their seats.
Moreno rolls out four fresh picks
As reported by NOLA, Moreno tapped Adler, Duplessis, Mann and Major to fill spots on the seven-member RTA board. The mayor is allowed to appoint five of the seven commissioners, and this batch of nominations now heads to the City Council for vetting and a vote. It is an early and very public move in Moreno’s broader push to reshape how transit is overseen across the city.
Who Moreno is putting on the board
Ann Duplessis is a longtime banking executive and former Louisiana state senator who holds senior roles at Liberty Bank and has served on multiple civic boards, according to her public bio on the Federation for Children site. Erika Mann and Barbara Major each bring deep community and education credentials. Their profiles on Moreno’s transition team page describe Mann as a longtime educator and CEO of the Dryades YMCA, and Major as a veteran community organizer with years of grassroots experience. Coleman Adler is best known locally as an entrepreneur and philanthropist, a role highlighted in arts and civic coverage such as the Ogden Museum write-up, which places him squarely in the city’s civic orbit.
Quick turnover at the RTA
Moreno’s announcement follows what can only be described as a rapid cleanout of the old guard. NOLA reported that Flozell Daniels Jr., Fred Neal Jr., Timolynn Sams, Mariah Moore and Arthur Walton were among the commissioners told their last day on the board would be Wednesday. The shakeup amounts to a swift leadership overhaul at the agency that runs buses, streetcars and ferries across the metro area, and it signals that Moreno is not easing into transit policy slowly.
Why Moreno says change is coming, and what riders might notice
Moreno has pitched the nominations as part of a broader effort to strengthen cooperation with neighboring parishes and to double down on equity and accessibility in transit decision-making. Those themes match priorities the RTA itself highlights in its public newsletters and rider materials, which emphasize equity, regional connections, service reliability, workforce development and access as ongoing agency goals. Moreno also has a prior record on fare equity. As City Council president she supported a zero-fare youth pilot in 2024 intended to reduce cost barriers for young riders, according to local coverage, a move that set the stage for her current focus on who is steering the agency.
What happens next
The four nominees now move to the New Orleans City Council for hearings and confirmation votes. Until council members sign off, they remain nominees without a say on official decisions. Riders and advocates will be watching closely to see whether a reconstituted board shifts its stance on fares, service frequency and regional coordination, and just how fast any new priorities translate into changes on the routes that people rely on every day.
