Transportation News, Volume 36, Number 6, November/December 2011 Page: 20
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iL News&Notes
Toll Ops Off to a New Start
In line with our Modernization
efforts, TxDOT has moved the
toll functions away from the
Texas Turnpike Authority Division
and formed a new division. The
separation better aligns TxDOT's
organizational structure to meet
the changing needs of the traveling
public and helps prioritize limited
resources to meet the ever-growing
list of needs.
The new Toll Operations Division
will oversee toll collection operating
systems for department toll
roads, as well as providing traffic
and revenue services, and toll
operations planning. Toll operations
and toll collections now have a
direct reporting line to the financial
management of the department,
which is important to running an
efficient and effective toll system."I look forward to the challenge
of setting up the Toll Operations
Division and providing the level of
customer service that administration
and the Commission expects," said
Toll Operations Division Interim
Director Doug Woodall. "The main
functions of the new division are to
provide the most efficient and cost
effective toll collection solutions,
maximize revenue and provide a
future revenue stream for regions
to reinvest in their transportation
network."
Woodall adds that by separating
the public-private partnership
procurement process from
operations - similar to a district
having a Transportation Planning and
Development Department and a
director of operations - both divisionswill have more accountability that
comes with the distinction of roles.
The revised Texas Turnpike Authority
Division will oversee procurement
policies and support activities for
public-private partnerships. This
separation of duties will follow the
natural distinction between project
development and toll operations
activities.
"With major project development and
public-private partnerships reporting
directly to the engineering operations
of the department, these functions
are more accountable and better
serve our goals of moving people
and goods," said Interim Director of
the Texas Turnpike Authority Division
Ed Pensock.
As TxDOT moves forward with
modernization, these types of
restructuring efforts will make our
agency more efficient, accountable
and beneficial to the public.;,Turning Talent into Triumph
TxDOTs Saldana Talks about Success with Girl ScoutsWhen a group of fourth grade
girls get together, the talk
inevitably gets around to
clothes, school and, of course,
Justin Bieber. But if you add an
Olympic gold medal winner to the
mix of young girls, the discussion
takes a decided turn.
In September, Dr. Tamela Saldana,
director of TxDOT's Disadvantaged,
Small and Historically Underutilized
Business programs, stepped away
from her regular duties to talk to
Junior Girl Scout Troop 18 of Bryker
Woods Elementary in Austin. The
discussion was part of the troop's
efforts to earn their aMUSE Journey
badges, which focus on confidence,
leadership building and the leader-
ship roles that women play in the
community.
Salanda is an accomplished athlete.
At 14, she won the coveted gold
medal at the 1984 Los AngelesOlympic Games as a junior
member of the USA track and
field team, and went on to
win four state championship
titles in high school. At the
University of Texas, she earned
eight All-American titles and
contributed to four national .
championships for the UT
women's track and field team.
"At UT, I was surrounded
by Olympic athletes. My
head coach was an Olympic
coach," Saldana said. "I
discovered that if you
surround yourself with
greatness, great things are expected
of you. I learned to expect nothing
less than the best from myself and
my teammates."
It's a lesson she related to the
scout troop.
"Nobody should be able to pigeon-
hole girls or women into certain rolesjust because we're female. I had
to learn not to let someone else's
paradigm define me. And I don't
think these girls will, either. As I
looked around the room, I could
tell that I was watching some future
Olympians," Saldana said.020
TN / November - December 2011
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Texas. Department of Transportation. Transportation News, Volume 36, Number 6, November/December 2011, periodical, December 2011; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth639285/m1/20/: accessed March 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.