Remarks for Secretary Lyndo Tippett
Orientation for Transportation Engineering Associates
Tuesday, June 7, 2005
9 a.m.
Board Room
Thank you, Helen, for that introduction.
It's great to be here this morning.
Congratulations to all of you on your new jobs, and welcome to the North Carolina Department of Transportation-which we think is the greatest state agency.
NCDOT has nearly 14,000 employees and a $3.2 billion budget.
It takes hard work and dedication to make an organization this large successful.
Also, it takes talented employees like you, who possess a strong work ethic and a commitment to helping us live up to our reputation as "The Good Roads State."
Working for NCDOT is both an honor and a great responsibility.
We are certainly proud of all our accomplishments.
NCDOT has a far-reaching influence on all North Carolinians.
Did you realize that North Carolina has…
- 78,500 miles of state-maintained highway-only Texas maintains a few more miles than we do?
- 74 publicly-owned and nearly 300 privately-owned airports?
- more than 3,000 acres of wildflowers?
- the nation's second largest Adopt-A-Highway anti-litter program?
- the second largest ferry system in the nation-with 25 vessels along our coast and three inland ferries?
- 17 publicly-owned urban transit systems and carpool/vanpool services?
- 2 state owned trains-the Carolinian and Piedmont Trains; and
- 3,500 miles of railroad tracks-around 400 of those miles are owned by the North Carolina Railroad?
At your seats, you have one of our agenda cards.
This is our plan for improving transportation in North Carolina.
As you can see, our major commitments include:
- Implementing the new long-range statewide transportation plan;
- Seeking innovative solutions to meet the state's growing transportation needs;
- Improving project delivery;
- Preserving, protecting and improving the state's natural resources;
- Providing transportation infrastructure to boost economic development in all parts of the state;
- Improving alternative modes of transportation,
- Improving operating efficiency and security through new technologies;
- Creating more opportunities for employees and business partners and expanding diversity across all levels of the department;
- Improving customer service and expanding public participation; and
- Improving highway safety for employees and motorists.
Take a moment to study these goals.
Make these ten goals your goals.
You'll never know when your manager will quiz you on them.
I'm just kidding, but because many of you will go on to become engineers in Planning, Roadway, Structures-or you may be a Resident or District Engineer-I think it's important for all of us to share the same vision.
These goals will serve as the foundation of your training for the next 18 months.
This is an aggressive agenda, but here at NCDOT, we believe in raising the bar.
We want to continue to implement methods to improve efficiency and to be as financially conservative and cost effective as possible.
The employees of this department, like you, are our greatest asset.
You will keep this department moving forward with critical functions such as planning, building and maintaining our transportation network.
Today, you join the ranks of a dedicated and extremely talented work force.
We are honored to have you as a part of our team.
Thank you and congratulations!
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