Senate Committee on Transportation (04/14/2015)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION

Date:	04/14/2015	ATTENDANCE

Time:	02:02 PM to 02:37 PM	Cooke	X
		Garcia	X
Place:	SCR 352	Todd	X
		Scott	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Baumgardner	X
	Senator Baumgardner

This Report was prepared by
	Mistia Zuckerman
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
Conf 15-Executive Director - Department of Transportation		Refer to the Full Senate

02:02 PM -- Confirmation of Executive Director of the Department of Transportation: Shailen Bhatt

Senator Baumgardner, Chair, called the meeting to order. A quorum was present.

02:04 PM

Kevin Patterson, Interim Executive Director at the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, and Shailen Bhatt, Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), came to the table. Mr. Patterson introduced Mr. Bhatt and discussed his professional background.

02:04 PM

Mr. Bhatt introduced his family and discussed his experience at the Delaware Department of Transportation. He said that he is interested in delivering projects under budget and on time, and discussed Colorado's budget challenges. He said that he looks forward to working with local governments and other stakeholders, and wants Coloradans to feel that transportation is something CDOT does with them and not to them.

Senator Cooke asked Mr. Bhatt how he would focus on the rural areas of the state and if he would require traffic engineers to drive problematic areas to identify problems. Mr. Bhatt discussed his experience on Interstate 25, different types of traffic signals, and complaints from bicyclists about rumble strips.

02:15 PM

Senator Scott asked Mr. Bhatt what he thought would be the greatest transportation challenges in Colorado and potential solutions to those problems. Mr. Bhatt said that the benefit of being new to the state is that he can look at the challenges with fresh eyes. He acknowledged that he has a lot to learn, but said that he believes that Colorado is choking on growth. He discussed the capacity of roads in Colorado compared to the east coast, problems with large potholes on major roadways, and the role of transportation in economic development.

02:22 PM

Committee discussion ensued regarding high occupancy vehicle lanes and hybrid vehicles. Senator Baumgardner asked Mr. Bhatt about how he would deal with the problems created by snowstorms. Mr. Bhatt discussed his experience driving in the mountains. Senator Baumgardner said that he looks forward to working with Mr. Bhatt to make the roads safe for families. Senator Todd asked how Mr. Bhatt plans to work with the press to help make people aware of transportation projects in the state.


BILL:	Confirmation of Executive Director of the Department of Transportation: Shailen Bhatt
TIME:	02:35:10 PM
MOVED:	Scott
MOTION:	Refer the appointment of Shailen Bhatt to the full Senate with a favorable recommendation and be referred to the consent calendar. The motion passed on a vote of 5-0.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Cooke	Yes
	Garcia	Yes
	Todd	Yes
	Scott	Yes
	Baumgardner	Yes


Final YES: 5 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:36 PM

The committee adjourned.