The governors of New Mexico and Rhode Island recently appointed interim leaders for their respective departments of transportation.
[Above images via NMDOT and RIDOT]
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) has named David Quintana as acting secretary of the New Mexico Department of Transportation. He replaces Ricky Serna, who retired as NMDOT secretary in February after three-and-a-half years in the role.
Meanwhile, Governor Dan McKee (D) named Robert Rocchio – chief engineer for infrastructure at the Rhode Island Department of Transportation – to serve as the agency’s interim director after Peter Alviti Jr. retired as its director in February.
Quintana has more than two decades of experience at NMDOT, rising through the ranks from engineer-in-training to his most recent role as director of NMDOT’s Programs and Infrastructure Division and chief engineer, where he oversees more than 220 employees and manages an annual budget exceeding $500 million.
His NMDOT experience also includes directing the agency’s statewide design and construction program, managing six district offices and overseeing project development, bridge design, environmental review, right-of-way acquisition, and the Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan
“David Quintana has spent his career delivering transportation projects that connect our communities and move New Mexico forward,” the governor said in a statement. “He is well prepared to lead the New Mexico Department of Transportation.”
Prior to joining NMDOT, Quintana – who holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from New Mexico State University – served in district engineering roles across northern New Mexico and as the roadway and drainage section manager for the City of Santa Fe.
In Rhode Island, Gov. McKee recently held a media event to formally introduce Rocchio as RIDOT’s interim director and discuss upcoming construction projects.
Rocchio started working for RIDOT in 1991 as an intern in the agency’s bridge section before advancing to a full-time civil engineering position in the planning division and subsequently being promoted to the design section.
Rocchio – who holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Rhode Island – then served as state traffic and safety engineer in 2007 before being promoted to chief engineer in 2017. He lives in South Kingstown with his wife and daughter.
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