Royal Roads alumni new Vancouver transit police chief

A senior Edmonton police officer is the new chief of Metro Vancouver's Transit Police.

Neil Dubord, 49, is deputy chief of Edmonton's community policing bureau and will be sworn in here Feb. 1.

TransLink's 167-officer force had been without a permanent chief officer for more than a year after the police board terminated former chief Ward Clapham in  September of 2010, citing a desire to change the force's management style.

TransLink chief operating officer Doug Kelsey cited Dubord's exemplary career, awards and academic achievements.

"Neil has covered a lot of ground in the 25 years since he began policing downtown Edmonton as a rookie officer," he said. "I am delighted to see such a high-calibre individual join the team at TransLink and Transit Police."

Transit Police board chair Mark Reder said the force was seeking a candidate with on-the-ground police experience and strong management skills who knows the value of being close to the community.

Dubord has a master's degree in leadership and training from Royal Roads University and a doctorate in business management from Arizona's Northcentral University. He has also studied at the Canadian Police College, the University of Virginia and at the FBI.

He's a nationally recognized expert in critical incident command.

Written by Jeff Nagel, Black Press reporter