Concluding a four-month search for the next director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, a 40-year veteran of the department stepped forward Wednesday as the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission’s unanimous choice.
Ed Hassinger, who has been serving as interim director, told reporters at a news conference that increasing staff is a top priority. He said the department has missed more than 2 million labor hours over the past decade — due to the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic, high employee turnover, a decline in the number of incarcerated workers the department once relied on and other stressors .
Ed Hassinger, the new director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, speaks during a news conference about historic investments in the department announcing his new role.
One tool to restore workforce levels is better wages, and the department is awaiting the outcome of a legal battle to determine whether it can use the Road Fund to boost workers’ wages. The department won the case in Cole County Circuit Court and oral arguments were heard last week in the Western District Missouri Court of Appeals.
Hassinger said the department has “the resources,” but does not have them available. The department will seek permission to spend money currently in the Road Fund to pay for 250 additional employees.
“This is Road Fund money; we already have it, but we just need the regulatory approval,” he said.
The department asked lawmakers for the money last year but was denied after lawmakers pointed out a large number of vacancies. Hassinger does not expect the same problem to occur this year. He says the department has “stopped the bleeding” and maintenance positions are expected to be full by July.
He steps into the role at a time when the department has a “generational level of funding” that has taken “many decades of work.”
The state Legislature has appropriated money from the state general fund for the department, defying precedent. Committee Chairman Dustin Boatright told reporters he expects to request additional appropriations from the general fund.
MoDOT has a plan to spend $14.6 billion on the state’s infrastructure over five years. Boatright said the department has secured all available federal appropriations and has applied for additional discretionary funding from the federal government.
The committee needed to choose someone who could manage the large volume of work seamlessly. The obvious choice was Hassinger, he said.
“The historic number of projects we currently have underway requires someone who can hit the ground running with years of project management experience and a track record of fostering leadership development within the department,” Boatright said. “While we had candidates with solid skills and extensive experience, we believe Ed is the best fit.”
Ed Hassinger, the new director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, wears Missouri’s “Buckle Up, Phone Down” logo as a pin during a news conference announcing his new role.
He praised Hassinger’s record as the department’s chief engineer since 2013 with additional duties as deputy director since 2018.
“(Hassinger) has consistently delivered results that have made Missouri a national leader in project delivery and delivered great value to every Missourian,” he said.
The department has completed more than 4,000 projects over the past decade at a cost of $9.7 billion.
“I want to emphasize that we are building on a foundation here,” Hassinger said. “Those who came before us, previous committees and leaders in the department, laid the foundation on which we stand, and we are going to take that to the next level and make it happen.”
Former director Patrick McKenna held the role for nine years before resigning in August. He said he had “never had more confidence in MoDOT’s future.” He now serves as president and CEO of the Eno Center for Transportation, a nonprofit think tank focused on transportation policy.
Among the other candidates seeking the MoDOT leadership position was Sen. Lincoln Hough, a Springfield Republican who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Reporter Rudi Keller contributed to this report, which was first published on missouriindependent.com.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: MoDOT veteran will lead agency with nearly $15 billion in planned projects
