Tag: Elaine Chao

Who is Mayor Pete?

By Ken Klein OAAA Executive Vice President, Government Affairs   President-Elect Biden plans to nominate former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg as transportation secretary, replacing Elaine Chao of President Trump’s Cabinet. Mayor Pete snapshot: He’s 38 Rhodes Scholar Navy veteran, deployed to Afghanistan in 2014 Mayor of South Bend, IN […]

Americans Drove Record Number of Miles in 2018

Americans are driving more than ever. Data released March 21 by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) said miles driven in 2018 increased 12.2 billion miles compared to 2017 (to 3.225 trillion in 2018, a record). Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao expressed three points regarding this trend: The economy is strong Gas […]

Feds Saying No to NY and AZ on Highway Signs

  Feds Take Action To . . . Penalize NY State for Signs on Right of Way; Block Privatized Rest Areas in Arizona Federal transportation authorities are withholding $14 million in highway funds to New York State as punishment for installing signs on the public right of way that do […]

What Riles People? (Hint: not billboards)

US-DOT Just Got Thousands of Comments from the Public By Ken Klein,  executive vice president of the Outdoor Advertising Association of America, OAAA When US-DOT asked for comments about its regulations, I was curious to see the file. Two quick points: My assumptions were off I read the whole file […]

Senate Confirms Chao For Transportation Secretary

As a follow up to our story yesterday Elaine Chao was confirmed on Tuesday as Transportation secretary.  The confirmation passed in the Senate on a 93-6 vote. Chao, who was born in Taiwan and came to the U.S. with her parents when she was 8, will face several urgent action items […]

What Did the New DOT Secretary Say About Ads on the Right of Way?

Searching for new revenue, some states have contemplated commercial advertising on official traffic signs on the public right of way. US Senator Jerry Moran, R-KS, asked the next Secretary of Transportation about ads-on-the-road. Insider is providing the senator’s question and the reply from Elaine Chao, nominated by President Trump as Secretary […]