Hampton Roads Transit (HRT), incorporated on October 1, 1999, began through the voluntary merger of PENTRAN (Peninsula Transportation District Commission) on the Virginia Peninsula and TRT (Tidewater Regional Transit a.k.a. Tidewater Transit District Commission) in South Hampton Roads and currently serves over 22 million annual passengers within its service area around Hampton Roads. The purpose of the HRT is to provide reliable and efficient transportation service and facilities to the Hampton Roads community. In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of . Hampton Roads is located in southeastern Virginia. The Hampton Roads metropolitan area has a population of 1.6 million. Its service area consists of the cities of Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Hampton, Newport News, Williamsburg (Colonial Williamsburg) and the town of Smithfield. The entire service area population is 1.3 million. HRT also serves the area's major college campuses of Christopher Newport University, Hampton University, Norfolk State University, Old Dominion University, Virginia Peninsula Community College, and Tidewater Community College. Effective January 1, 2012, the City of Suffolk, Virginia chose to withdraw from the Transportation District Commission of Hampton Roads and since, HRT no longer provides transit services within Suffolk. However, a couple HRT routes do connect with the Suffolk Transit service, which is provided by Virginia Regional Transit. Governance Hampton Roads Transit is governed by the Transportation District Commission of Hampton Roads (TDCHR). The TDCHR was established in accordance with Chapter 45 of Title 15.2 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, referred to as the Transportation District Act of 1964 and by ordinances adopted by the governing bodies of its components governments. The Transportation District Commission of Hampton Roads, HRT's governing body, consists of 13 members, one elected official and one citizen representative from each city served by Hampton Roads Transit, and the chairman of the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB), or a designee. The six Hampton Roads cities that participate rotate the chairmanship each year. The Honorable Richard W. "Rick" West (Chesapeake) is the current chairman. There are five established committees that provide input to the governing body. These committees are listed below: Executive Committee, Audit/Budget Review Committee, Operations & Oversight, Planning and New Start Development, Paratransit Committee, and Commission Effectiveness (Ad hoc). Leadership William E. Harrell is the current president and CEO of Hampton Roads Transit. Harrell went to Hampton Roads Transit from Chesapeake, Virginia, where he was the city