The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials recently released the latest episode in its “State DOT 2-Minute Update” video series; this one featuring Eileen Vélez-Vega (above), secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works, known as DTOP.
[Above photo by AASHTO]
In the video, Vélez-Vega – who serves as the chair of the AASHTO Council on Aviation Transportation – discusses the ongoing recovery efforts from recent hurricanes and earthquakes that struck Puerto Rico, as well as how her agency funds long-term transportation innovation and system maintenance efforts.
She also talks about how her agency works to improve Puerto Rico’s transportation infrastructure and services, emphasizing resilience and quality of life enhancement for the island’s population.
Raised in Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico, Vélez-Vega received a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez and a Masters in Engineering from Mississippi State University. She interned at the Walt Disney World college program in Florida and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama.
Vélez-Vega also worked for four years with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a civil engineer and then for the North Carolina-based Kimley-Horn design and planning firm from 2006 until she returned to Puerto Rico in 2014, when she became Kimley-Horn’s vice president of business development on the island.
[Editor’s note: In 2023, Vélez-Vega filmed a TEDx River Oaks video distilling the life lessons she’s gained during her nearly 20-year civil engineering career.]
Vélez-Vega – who specializes in the design and construction for commercial and general aviation airports, as well as multidisciplinary projects and business development – became the first female secretary of the Puerto Rico’s DTOP in 2020.