SASHTO 2010 Little Rock, Arkansas August 28-September 1

The Arkansas Department of Transportation hosted the 69th Annual Meeting of SASHTO in Little Rock, AR

/// Highlights

August 28-September 1, 2010

Over 600 participants gathered from this region of the country to learn more about topics and trends in the transportation industry. Among the special guests who addressed our group were Governor Mike Beebe and former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Rodney Slater. Over 15 technical sessions were offered to participants over the four-day event. A “Trade Show and Equipment Expo” featured over 100 booths. As hosts, we also had the opportunity to showcase two of Little Rock’s finest attractions as we hosted events at Heifer International Headquarters and the William J. Clinton Presidential Library.

7 Outstanding Projects Recognized at SASHTO Conference
Highway users in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia are safer because of the hard work of their state transportation departments -- efforts that were honored on Monday as seven projects from the Southeast were named winners in the America's Transportation Awards regional competition.

"These projects represent a tremendous value to the taxpayer and illustrate the complex tasks that go into modernizing and maintaining the nation's system of highways and bridges," said John Horsley, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. "In these tough economic times, state departments of transportation are making every dollar count and these outstanding projects clearly show how all of us benefit."

Nine transportation projects from seven southeastern states were entered into four project categories: Best Recovery Act, On Time, Under Budget, and Innovative Management. The seven winning projects were announced at the Southeastern Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Meeting in Little Rock, Arkansas.

The Virginia Department of Transportation received two awards: one for the Battlefield Boulevard Chesapeake Project in Hampton Roads, which took home a prize in the Innovative Management, Medium Project category; and another for the Jeremy's Run Bridge Project in the northwestern part of the state, which won in the On Time, Small Project category.

Phase 2 of the SmartFIX40 Knoxville Project improved safety and reduced congestion, winning an award for the Tennessee Department of Transportation in the On Time, Medium Project category. The Arkansas Recovery Act Rehabilitation Project from the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department won in the Best Recovery Act, Medium Project category. The Mississippi Department of Transportation won an award in the Under Budget, Medium Project category for the Laurel S-Curve Reconstruction Project.

An innovative program that encompassed hundreds of projects across the state -- dubbed the Louisiana TIMED Project by the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development -- won in the Innovative Management, Large Project category. The North Carolina Department of Transportation's Morganton Bridge Replacement Project in Fayetteville won in the Innovative Management, Small Project category.

"Clearly we are building great projects," said Butch Brown, Mississippi Department of Transportation executive director and AASHTO president. "State transportation departments are working hard and we are being accountable, and we are performing with pride. This is a message we need to drive home with Congress -- we need to let them know how important transportation funding is, and that we need a committed and reliable program to keep the momentum going."