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2005 ARTBA "PRIDE Award" Winners Announced at Lunch Event in Nation’s Capital
Washington, D.C. [April 26, 2005]—Transportation construction organizations from Maine to New Mexico were recognized at the American Road & Transportation Builders Association Transportation Development Foundation’s (ARTBA-TDF) six annual "PRIDE Awards" luncheon, held April 26 during the association’s "Federal Issues Program" in Washington, D.C. Established by the ARTBA Board of Directors in October 1999, the PRIDE Awards honor "excellence in community relations and public education that enhance the image of the U.S. transportation construction industry." This year’s awards competition was sponsored by Better Roads and Roads & Bridges magazines. An independent panel of public relations professionals and construction industry journalists selected the winners. State transportation departments and private sector firms were recognized in the following categories: Public-Media Relations/Education: This category recognizes programs and activities that educate the public and opinion leaders about the significant contributions the transportation construction industry (or a specific sector of it) makes to the economy and/or quality of life. Community Relations: This category recognizes programs and activities that demonstrate positive civic involvement with the community in which a public agency, firm or association is located. Public-Media Relations/Education State Departments of Transportation First place (tie): North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), Raleigh NCDOT partnered with ARTBA contractor affiliate, Carolinas Associated General Contractors, to promote the "Work Zone Safety Program" throughout the state’s schools. Hundreds of students, ages 5 to 18, participated in a poster contest and created artwork depicting their ideas for safer work zones. A dozen winning entries were included in a calendar that was distributed to schools, NCDOT employees and to the general public to remind motorists to: "Drive Smart. Do Your Part." First place: New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT), Santa Fe The NMDOT launched an integrated communications campaign in the summer 2003 aimed at building public support for GRIP, a $1.6 billion statewide highway, commuter rail and airport infrastructure expansion and improvement program. It included attending city, county and tribal council meetings to share specific details of the plan, publishing informational packets showing the project costs and economic impacts and waging a major print and radio ad blitz. It was supported by nearly 100 cities, counties, business groups and chambers of commerce statewide. GRIP was approved by the legislature and signed into law in November 2003. Second place: Mississippi Department of Transportation, Jackson Students in Mississippi have a greater understanding and appreciation of the transportation industry as a result of the TRAC educational program developed by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and implemented by the Mississippi Department of Transportation. Mississippi became the first state to incorporate the TRAC program into the career discovery curriculum on a statewide basis. The TRAC modules provide complete lesson plans for teachers and offer students exciting hands-on activities for solving real-world transportation challenges while addressing state and national standards of learning. Activities such as designing bridges and selecting roadway alignments bring math and science to life. The program, currently in 187 Mississippi schools, also helps students enhance their understanding of the importance of transportation to their communities and learn more about transportation career opportunities. Third place: North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), Raleigh NCDOT, in partnership with Carolinas Associated General Contractors and the American Council of Engineering Companies of North Carolina, promoted the transportation, construction and engineering industries by developing an annual model bridge building competition. The program successfully reached middle and high school students from across the state who used their critical thinking skills and submitted a model bridge drawing, the balsa wood model bridge and a written report explaining their design. More than 35 schools participated in regional competitions. At the finals, students delivered oral presentations on their proposals, and the winners received prize money that was used to support their classroom activities. Honorable Mention Honorable mention was awarded to the New Jersey Department of Transportation for "New Jersey Future in Transportation" (NJFIT), a comprehensive education campaign to promote the intelligent land use and transportation decisions that have helped improve quality of life in communities throughout the state. Private Sector First place: Southeast Corridor Constructors, Centennial, Colorado It's not too often the general public gets an "up close and behind-the-scenes" look into operations on a $1.7 billion, multi-modal transportation project, but that's exactly what Southeast Corridor Constructors accomplished when it invited the media to the "Transportation Expansion (T-REX)" project along I-25 and I-225 in metropolitan Denver. The company invited journalists and photographers from the Rocky Mountain News, one of Denver's daily newspapers, to spend an entire day on site reporting on every aspect of the project. It resulted in a 16-page special section in the paper in September 2003 entitled "24 Hours in the Life of T-REX," and reached more than 275,000 stakeholders. The media relations outreach program successfully helped shine the public spotlight on the mega-project and highlighted the ongoing economic benefits of the project as well as the safety benefits that will result once construction is completed. Second place: Maine Turnpike Authority (MTA), Portland To build and maintain support for the five-year, $135 million rehabilitation, reconstruction and expansion of 30 miles and 18 bridges on the Maine turnpike, the MTA launched the "Thinking Ahead" communications program. While communicating up-to-date project information, the program also established a new, positive and lasting brand identity for the nearly 60-year old agency. It included implementation of a multi-media campaign targeting the public with regular paid television, radio and print ads, website, e-mail alerts, a toll-free hotline, variable message boards and the distribution of newsletters and brochures with project updates. An independent survey of the state's residents taken after construction was completed found that 97 percent agreed the project was conducted in a safe manner, nearly 90 percent believed MTA has done an "excellent" or "good job" of keeping the public informed, and more than 75 percent felt the agency managed the project "very well" or "well." Third place: The Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake City, Utah Utah Department of Transportation—along with HDR Engineering, Wilkinson Ferrari & Company, Penna Powers Brian Haynes, and Fehr & Peers—joined forces to present the general public and news media with all of the facts relating to this high profile project near Salt Lake City. The parkway is a 14-mile transportation corridor bordered by a multi-use trail system and a 2,100-acre nature preserve. It has received national attention from the media because of lawsuits filed by professional environmental groups aimed at halting construction. The open house included a model of the project, 3-dimensional real time animations, PowerPoint and video presentations, information about the environmental impacts and experts to answer any questions. Officials from the Department, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Federal Highway Administration, as well as representatives of the construction and design teams, participated in the hearing and received input from concerned citizens. The events resulted in increased newspaper editorial support for the project, and public opinion surveys found that more than 80 percent of residents in the affected county agreed it should go forward. Honorable Mention Honorable mention was awarded to the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Parsons Brinckerhoff for their joint public affairs outreach aimed at building support for the $4 billion statewide Transportation Infrastructure Model for Economic Development (TIMED) program. Community Relations State Departments of Transportation First place: South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT), Charleston By enhancing area employment, education, housing, and health/environmental opportunities, the SCDOT's Cooper River Bridge project has "built a bridge" with a solid community foundation. Recognizing the value of public feedback, the agency opened a "community bridge office" adjacent to the project’s right-of-way to field questions from citizens and track community concerns. Agency officials conducted face-to-face interviews with impacted residents to understand their needs, delivered more than 500 project presentations, and distributed project updates door-to-door. When the community asked to enhance their employment opportunities, more than 80 previously under-employed and unemployed people were hired to complete the project's pre-employment program and given on-the-job training positions with the design/build contractor. Such efforts enabled North America's longest cable stay span to be completed a year ahead of schedule and within the $632 million budget. Second Place : Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT), Jackson MDOT's "Transploreum" exhibit, located on the campus of Tupelo Middle School, provides an environment for students to explore the impacts of transportation on all aspects of life. It includes distance learning classrooms, murals, photos and other displays depicting the history of transportation and highlights of Mississippi's transportation milestones. The facility, a model of collaboration between federal and state transportation officials, local leaders and educators, has reached hundreds of children and benefited the entire community. Third place: New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT) District Six, Milan Located in Milan, N.M., District Six has seven distinct Tribal Governments within its boundaries—each with its own values, culture, traditions, beliefs, laws , policies and transportation issues. In recognition and respect of the unique sovereign status of the tribes, District Six formalized government-to-government relationships by signing "Memorandum of Understanding" with the tribes. These agreements helped improve communication and facilitate discussion on issues such as the building of interchange projects, sharing design and construction costs on transportation improvement projects and designating "safe routes to school." Private Sector First place: Rogers Group, Inc. , Oak Ridge, Tennessee Rogers Group, Inc., developed a multi-pronged approach that served as a model of how to build a strong relationship with Oak Ridge residents, while simultaneously educating young people about the transportation construction industry. It included donating educational materials such as coloring books, aggregate activity books and posters to schools so that students could learn more about the stone industry. Company employees also spent time at several schools teaching students about stone and aggregates. On other fronts, Rogers Group also conducted repair work at one local high school and provided paving services for the Oak Ridge Rowing Association. These outreach initiatives helped further bolster the company’s ties with the community. Second place: Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT), Wilmington DelDOT, with its public involvement team of FIGG Engineering Group and Kramer & Associates, executed an extensive program to educate and involve residents in the planning phase of the Indian River Inlet Bridge replacement project on the state’s southern coast. During 2003 and 2004, DelDOT held listening tours, public information workshops and design charettes to solicit ideas and involve the community in the design and aesthetics. A comprehensive website was also developed to communicate with the public. The program culminated in the unveiling of a scale model of the bridge that won the widespread support of the community and the participation of more than 700 people in the October 2004 groundbreaking event for this world-class bridge. Third place: HDR Engineering, Bellevue, Washington "Bellevue Direct Access" Stakeholders including city officials, business owners, residents and commuters were rightly concerned about the potential economic and traffic impacts that could result from the final phase of the Northeast 8th Street bridge replacement in Bellevue. HDR Engineering devised a unique design solution to replace the bridge without major disruptions and brought all of the parties together to implement the solution. It included building half the new bridge on temporary supports next to the existing bridge and then rolling it 64 feet into its permanent resting place, confining total closure of the street to one weekend. The project earned the city of Bellevue’s Downtown Business Association’s 2004 "Miracle of the Year" Award and helped enhance public perception of the engineering profession. Two honorable mentions were also presented in the Community Relations category. Act Engineers, Inc., the New Jersey Department of Transportation, Michael Baker, Jr., Inc., and Vollmer Associates LLP, were recognized for their joint community outreach program on the Route 29 Waterfront projects that became the centerpiece of for the revitalization of Trenton and its Delaware River shoreline. Shelly Materials, Inc., and Tri-Valley Schools were honored for their efforts to renovate and expand an Ohio elementary school outdoor classroom room that included a weather station, amphitheater, soil pits for geographic study, wetlands and birdhouses. Established in 1902, ARTBA is the consensus voice of the U.S. transportation construction industry in the Nation’s Capital. The ARTBA Transportation Development Foundation (ARTBA-TDF) was established in 1985 as a 501(c)3 tax-exempt entity to promote research, education and public awareness. It supports an array of initiatives, including educational scholarships, awards, roadway work zone safety and training programs, special economic reports and a national exhibition on transportation. ###
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