Lester P. Lamm Memorial Award Recognizes
Public Transportation Official's Service, Dedication
(HANOVER, MD) - Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) Secretary Greg Slater today was honored with a national award recognizing his commitment to public service. The Lester P. Lamm Memorial Award is presented annually by The Road Gang, a Washington D.C.-based group of transportation industry executives, to one transportation official from across the United States who exhibits leadership and dedication. Secretary Slater is the 25th recipient of the award and the second to represent Maryland.
“I'm honored and humbled to receive this Lester Lamm Award because it is really about public service and one of the true highlights of my career," Secretary Slater said. “Over the past year, we have seen public servants at transportation departments across the country stand up and show up for work every single day, from our highway workers to our transit operators to the men and women of our motor vehicle administrations and our airports. These public servants have shown us what resilience is through this pandemic. I would like to accept this award in honor of all of them over the last year and what they have dealt with and accomplished."
First presented in 1996, the Lester P. Lamm Memorial Award commemorates the leadership and guidance Lamm gave to the highway community over 40 years with the Federal Highway Administration and the Highway Users Federation. Lamm died in 1995. The award named for him is presented to outstanding public servants exhibiting leadership and dedication to U.S. highway transportation systems. The first Marylander to receive the award was then-MDOT State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) Administrator Neil Pedersen in 2004.
“Today's announcement is further proof of the outstanding job Secretary Slater has done throughout his career," said Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. “Secretary Slater is building partnerships, bridging gaps, addressing inequities and improving our transportation system as a whole. I couldn't be prouder of the job he has done."
Secretary Slater joined the MDOT team more than 20 years ago. He began his career in Plats and Surveys at MDOT SHA, eventually working his way up to Administrator. In February 2020, he was tapped by Governor Hogan to serve as the state's Transportation Secretary. He now oversees more than 10,000 employees across MDOT's various transportation modes.
“Secretary Slater is leading MDOT in this trying time of the COVID pandemic, enduring constrained federal, state and local resources," said Michael Sakata, Immediate Past Chairman of The Road Gang and President of the Maryland Transportation Builders and Materials Association. “Greg is now implementing major multimodal transportation, interstate and local highway projects with available state and federal resources, and the effective use of P3 opportunities. Personally, I've enjoyed working with Greg because he is truly a collaborator."
The Road Gang, organized in 1942, is an informal group of business and government executives, highway engineers and consultants, press and public relations specialists, company representatives and trade association officials from the highway transportation industry. The Road Gang serves the dual purpose of promoting fellowship and providing for the interchange of ideas among “Washington's Transportation Fraternity." The organization is comprised of about 200 members.