Steer Davies Gleave strengthens its US advisory team

Steer Davies Gleave is delighted to announce the appointment of Pierre Vilain to our Boston office. He joins as part of a continued effort to enhance our advisory team in the United States transportation market.

Pierre Vilain, Ph.D.: Pierre joins from HDR, where he was Vice President. He has over 22 years as an economist and specialises in urban and transportation economics.

Pierre has worldwide expertise in transportation and regional economic policy formulation and advisory, including the analysis and appraisal of major infrastructure projects, transportation demand modeling, economic cost-benefit analysis, risk analysis and financial appraisal.

Pierre’s involvement in infrastructure development includes working with sponsors, owners and lenders developing investment grade forecasts, which he has done in the context of numerous PPPs or conventional financing. Some of his recent high-profile projects include investment-grade model development for:

• Vancouver’s Translink;
• New York State Thruway;
• Chicago Skyway;
• Indiana Toll Road;
• Staten Island Ferry; and
• various toll roads in Spain and Latin America.

On the policy front, Pierre recently led a major multi-agency effort to develop a governance and management structure for the privately-operated passenger ferry system in the New York City region; estimated sources and magnitudes of fuel tax evasion in the United States for the Federal government; and analyzed the impact of regulatory changes on the asset value of taxi operator licenses in New York City.  

Jon Bottom, Head of our US Region said: “The expansion of Steer Davies Gleave in the US is reflective of our ongoing success in the region. I’m extremely pleased to welcome Pierre Vilain onboard – he brings with him a wealth of valuable experience to support our growing portfolio of advisory work in the P3 infrastructure, rail and urban transit sectors.”

Background information

Pierre Vilain is a noted expert in the application of econometric techniques to transportation modeling, including the merging of these models with network models. His expertise spans roads, transit and aviation in this realm. He has also applied regional modeling techniques to transportation demand modeling, addressing a frequent need in developing rigorous transportation demand analyses.

In transportation or urban development policy, Pierre is an expert in the application of cost-benefit analysis techniques and micro-economic analysis to infrastructure issues. He has been commissionsed to provide advisory  services to varied clients, including the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, FHWA and New York City Economic Development Corporation.

Pierre has previously worked at a senior executive level for Halcrow, Inc. and the Louis Berger Group. He has also been an economist at the European Investment Bank and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. He is a US Council Boad Member for the International Project Finance Association, and his research has been published widely in technical journals and publications.