Friday, October 16, 2009
News Saporta: GDOT downgrades rail program
Posted by Thomas Wheatley @thomaswheatley on Fri, Oct 16, 2009 at 2:00 PM
Maria Saporta sends word that the Georgia Department of Transportation has scaled back its division that oversees rail programs in the state.
Vance Smith, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Transportation, distributed a memo on Thursday, Oct. 15 announcing “organizational changes” in his department.“Over the last few months, we have worked diligently to strategically reorganize the Department to achieve greater efficiency in both functional alignment and program delivery,” Smith wrote in the memo.
He then released the new organization chart which diminishes the role of transit and intermodal transportation in the department.
That's a sad sign. Georgia's been sitting on federal funding for years that could kickstart a commuter rail line from Atlanta to Griffin. And just last month, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood publicly criticized the state for dragging its feet on rail.
Check out Saporta's full report for more details and a full text of Smith's memo.
Comments (5)
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MC W, The intermodal division, which oversees rail and other transit programs, was only beefed up last year. That was a surprising step for a department that for years seemed to focused solely on roads and bridges. Now it appears it's been absorbed by another division. Working on checking to see what the impact will be.
Mr, Smith appears to be listening to the same people who wanted Dr. Evans out. While not perfect, Gena started a lot of positive change that will not happen anytime soon. For GDOT it's back to blame management instead of problem solving.
It is my understanding that this is part of the GDOT reorg bill that was passed during the latest legislative session, and as such mandated by law, not something that Vance Smith had any control over. Am I correct about this?
In Smith's memo to GDOT employees (which you can read at Saporta's post linked above), he says the changes are "in accordance with recent legislation." I've given Senate Bill 200 a quick read since the news broke and I couldn't find in the bill where it calls for such a move. Keep in mind, it's a beast, so it could be in there. I reached out to GDOT communications on Friday but didn't hear back from them. If you can spot the change, please let me know in the comments or via email.
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