National Competition Will Select America’s Two Best Transportation Projects

September 11, 2020

Twelve state department of transportation projects were named finalists in the 2020 America’s Transportation Awards competition by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials; projects that make travel across America safer, better, and more accessible to motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians alike.

[Above photo by the Georgia DOT.]

The 12 state DOT projects in Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington State, and Wisconsin earned top honors in four regional contests held across the country. They now compete for two final awards: the Grand Prize and the People’s Choice Award. Both come with a $10,000 cash award for a charity or transportation-related scholarship of the winners’ choosing.

Patrick McKenna. Photo by Cathy Morrison/MoDOT

“The Top 12 projects are the best of the best. They’re helping to reduce traffic crashes and congestion [while] connecting people to jobs, recreation, and tourism,” explained Patrick McKenna, AASHTO’s 2019-2020 president and director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, in a statement.

“I’m privileged to be in a position where I can see how these transportation improvements benefit communities,” he said.

“During these extraordinary times, we’re seeing construction workers out there on the front lines continuing to build and repair the transportation infrastructure America depends on,” added Jim Tymon, AASHTO’s executive director.

“While many of these projects were completed before the COVID-19 Pandemic hit, they are today helping get medical supplies to hospitals and food to grocery stores,” he said.

“Transportation is essential and this contest celebrates the people and the projects that are keeping America moving,” Tymon noted.

In the America’s Transportation Awards competition – sponsored by AASHTO, AAA, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce – state DOTs compete in three categories: Quality of Life/Community Development; Best Use of Technology and Innovation; and Operations Excellence.

Each category is also designated by budget size: small (less than $25 million), medium ($25 million to $200 million), and large (more than $200 million).

The Top 12 finalists for the 2020 contest are:

An independent panel of transportation industry experts will select the Grand Prize winner, while the public will decide the People’s Choice Award winner through online voting – which begins today and ends at 11:59 p.m. on October 25 – with online votes weighted to each state’s population, allowing for greater competition between states with larger and smaller populations.

To vote in this year’s contest, click here.

AASHTO will announce the 2020 America’s Transportation Award winners at its virtual annual meeting the week of November 9-13.

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