Dive Brief:
- Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt left the Department of Transportation last week for the private sector, joining engineering firm AtkinsRéalis, he announced on LinkedIn.
- Bhatt, who rolled out billions of dollars in federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding as FHWA chief, is the company’s new SVP and COO of U.S., Latin America, minerals and metals.
- Former FHWA Chief Counsel Kristin White, promoted to deputy administrator in May, has been named acting federal highway administrator, leading the agency responsible for upkeep of the interstate highways truckers and other drivers travel every day. The FHWA noted the change on its website.
Dive Insight:
The departure of the agency’s 21st administrator, who had served in the role for a year and nine months, is further turnover in Transportation Department senior leadership amid a tight presidential election that is likely to determine the next permanent agency heads.
“It’s been just the honor of my career to lead the people of this agency who are making a critical difference for this nation at a critical time,” Bhatt said in a video farewell.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration also lost its most recent Senate-confirmed chief when Administrator Robin Hutcheson left in January. The former FMCSA head opened a private consulting shop, Hutcheson Advisory, in May, according to her LinkedIn.
The department praised Bhatt in a post on LinkedIn as a leader who coordinated the agency’s response to emergencies such as the Baltimore bridge collapse and Philadelphia I-95 bridge fire.
“Through his leadership and implementation of the transformative #BipartisanInfrastructureLaw, Administrator Bhatt has overseen unprecedented investment in our nation’s infrastructure, providing critical funding and deploying innovation to deliver projects that save lives and make people’s lives better,” the department said.
“FHWA’s efforts have strengthened Americans’ belief that the federal government will be there in their time of need,” the post added.
Bhatt has previously worked at AECOM and as the leader of the Delaware and Colorado departments of transportation.
