Several different sources have confirmed that DDOT Associate Director and Chief Engineer Kathleen Penney has resigned. Penney heads the Infrastructure and Project Management Administration (IPMA), which is responsible for the engineering and building of DDOT projects from street repaving to new bridges.

Many of our criticisms of DDOT have revolved around IPMA, which has been a force for conventional traffic engineering within DDOT. Often, progressive plans come out of DDOT’s Policy and Planning arm (TPPA), and then IPMA deletes parts that don’t conform to traditional street design rules. Sometimes the engineers genuinely can’t make something work in a way that fits with safety rules or turning radii for trucks, but I’ve heard that the delayed improvements at 15th and W, NW and lack of progress on the 15th Street contraflow bike lane had something to do with IPMA’s lack of enthusiasm. And according to consultants who’ve worked with DDOT, IPMA officials often disparage TPPA and have at times refused to participate in the same meeting as the planners.

Replacing Penney will be one of Gabe Klein’s best opportunities to change the culture at DDOT. We need a Chief Engineer who’s not only willing but eager to implement real improvements to the way we use public space and to pedestrian and bicycle safety, like protected bike lanes, raised crosswalks, and bulb-outs. We need a Chief Engineer who wants to work collaboratively with the planners to make DC’s streets the best and safest they can be. And, of course, we need a Chief Engineer who can manage huge projects and large teams of consultants and contractors to ensure that bridges, sidewalks, and roadbeds are completed on time and within budget.

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David Alpert created Greater Greater Washington in 2008 and was its executive director until 2020. He formerly worked in tech and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco Bay, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He lives with his wife and two children in Dupont Circle.