Former US DoT boss says job was sometimes like ‘sitting over trapdoor’

The political pressure on transit organisations was starkly highlighted by the distinguished former boss of Michigan Department of Transportation at a UK conference this week. Kirk Steudle, who joined Econolite recently after a career in the public sector, said he often felt as though there was “a trapdoor under your seat” while he was in charge of state transportation. Talking about the development of ITS solutions at regional authority level, he said: “The ability to move forward is largely dependen
November 30, 2018 Read time: 2 mins

The political pressure on transit organisations was starkly highlighted by the distinguished former boss of Michigan Department of Transportation at a UK conference this week.

Kirk Steudle, who joined %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external Econolite false http://http//www.itsinternational.com/categories/utc/news/econolite-hires-ex-michigan-dot-boss-kirk-steudle/ false false%> recently after a career in the public sector, said he often felt as though there was “a trapdoor under your seat” while he was in charge of state transportation.

Talking about the development of ITS solutions at regional authority level, he said: “The ability to move forward is largely dependent on the political structure in which you work.”

Having leaders who are receptive to the ideas that ITS brings means that some authorities will allow you to fail and learn from your efforts – but, he added: “Others will just kill you if you fail.”

Feeling as though you were sitting over a trapdoor was an uncomfortable experience, he says: “Some days it feels like ‘one mistake and you’re gone’. Some days [the trapdoor] felt like it was held together with toothpicks.”

But at other times, if politicians understood the challenges of introducing ITS, the ‘trapdoor’ felt as though it was supported by “steel rods”.

Speaking at the ITS (UK) 2018 summit in Bristol, Steudle praised current Michigan governor Rick Snyder’s support for ITS projects, saying: “Under Governor Snyder, it felt like it was welded shut.”

Urban Traffic Control

Related Content

  • Truvelo launches Eyewitness violation recorder
    March 20, 2018
    Truvelo is launching its new Eyewitness moving violation recorder (MVR) which combines class-leading automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) capabilities with high-definition (HD) video to address a series of driving and criminal offences. Designed to be used from a moving vehicle by police and law-enforcement agencies, Eyewitness is a significant extension of Truvelo’s current, static ANPR solution, which uses a camera provided by a partner company.
    Read More
  • Lyft Green Mode option allows riders to request electric and hybrid vehicles
    February 14, 2019
    Lyft is launching a Green Mode feature within its app to provide riders in Seattle with the option to travel in an electric or hybrid vehicle. The move follows the company’s planned introduction of thousands of electric vehicles (EVs) onto its platform this year. Lyft says the deployment will allow its drivers to increase net earnings as it says the cost of travelling in an EV is half that of a petrol-powered car, therefore saving hundreds of dollars per month on fuel costs. Drivers can switch
    Read More
  • Workshop on implications of self driving cars for auto industry
    February 6, 2017
    Autelligence’s new workshop Self-driving cars - Strategic implications for the auto industry and beyond, is a forum for executives on the likely consequences of self-driving cars on the auto manufacturing industry. It offers a framework to work out the strategic implications for OEMs and suppliers through a deeper understanding of the competing business models and an assessment of the current technologies and the strategies of leading companies. The workshops will be held on 23 March at the Frankfurt
    Read More
  • New York City wins ITF award
    May 25, 2018
    New York City has won the 2018 Transport Achievement Award of the International Transport Forum (ITF) at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The city’s Department of Transportation was recognised for its commitment to Vision Zero – a programme set up to help cut and eliminate traffic deaths. Mayor Bill de Blasio launched the city’s Vision Zero programme in New York in 2014. The initiative is said to have reduced the number of traffic deaths on New York’s streets by 20% and halved
    Read More

Highlighted Content