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ITD shares solutions with Alaska DOT delegation

Alaska has a problem – more transportation infrastructure needs than available resources to meet those needs. Sound familiar?

Representatives from the Alaska Department of Transportation recently visited ITD as part of a trip through the Pacific Northwest looking at how the neighbors – Idaho, Oregon and Washington – are managing their transportation infrastructure challenges.

Unlike most states, Alaska relies almost solely on federal money to fund transportation projects. In 2008, nearly three-quarters of Alaska’s $810 million transportation budget came from federal funding. Future plans for the 49th state include a possible $2 billion transportation investment program.

“We appreciated the opportunity to sit down with our colleagues from Alaska and discuss ways that major project and program initiatives can be delivered,” said ITD’s GARVEE Program Manager Jason Brinkman. “Not only did we pass on the knowledge and experience we are gaining through the GARVEE Program, but we also learned a lot about what they and other neighboring states are doing.”

Deputy Director Scott Stokes said that he was happy to share the key elements of Idaho’s successful GARVEE Program with the delegation. Stokes said he was particularly pleased with recent actions during the global economic crisis.

Alaska delegation

Roger Healy, Chief Engineer
Mark O’Brien, Chief of Contracts – Headquarters
Jeff Ottesen, Director of Program Development (Planning)
Dave Bloom, Northern Region Preconstruction Engineer
Steve Titus, Northern Region Director
Andy Hughes, Southeast Region Director

“The wisdom of our financial people outsmarted the markets,” Stokes said. “We took a conservative approach to ensure that we could finance contractors through the duration of construction. We did the right things.”

“The delegation seemed most interested in how Idaho manages its large construction projects.” Brinkman said.

He added the Alaska group was interested specifically in the concept of a program manager and how that worked.

“We were proud to tell the Alaska delegation about how we evolved the program management model to one that involves department staff in every aspect of the program,” Brinkman said. “We credit our success in this transition to the flexibility and adaptability that both ITD staff and our consultant community have shown.”