A CalAPA-supported bill to implement speed-enforcement cameras in highway work zones has passed the Legislature and is headed to the governor's desk to be signed into law.

The bill, AB289 by Assemblyman Matt Haney, D-San Francisco, was approved by the state Senate last week on a bipartisan 36-3, and later cleared the Assembly on a 69-1 vote. The governor, who expected to sign the measure into law, has until Oct. 12 to take action. CalAPA's letter to the governor urging his signature is HERE.

The bill will establish a pilot program to install speed-zone enforcement cameras on 75 active construction or maintenance zones on the state highway system in California, which is approximately 10% of the total active work zones on the state highway system at any given time. The Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) systems, which issue citations to speeding motorists, have been effective in reducing work-zone crashes in other states that have implemented them, including Pennsylvania and New York.

Existing law allows limited use of such cameras in a few local cities, but they have not been deployed widely. Notable exceptions are in San Francisco and in Malibu.

According to the author, despite warning signs, flashing lights and law enforcement patrols, drivers continue to speed through construction zones. In 2023, there were more than 100 vehicle intrusions into work sites on California highways — collisions that killed or seriously injured workers. In 2021, the state recorded 9,500 crashes in work zones, nearly 3,000 injuries and 73 deaths.

“These workers aren’t just names on a report,” Haney said. “They’re moms, dads, sons, daughters — people who never made it home from work. AB 289 is how we stop these tragedies before they happen.”

A broad coalition of organizations representing the construction industry and construction trade unions is supporting the bill. More information about the bill is HERE.

Caltrans District 9 Director Ryan Dermody has been named acting chief deputy director of the department, filling the department's No. 2 leadership position vacated by Mike Keever, who retired earlier this month.

In an internal Caltrans e-mail from newly appointed Caltrans Director Dina El-Tawansy, she said Dermody would be stepping into the role effective Sept. 6.

Dermody has been district director for Caltrans District 9 since May of 2020. The largely rural district encompasses Inyo, Mono and eastern Kern counties. It covers about 2,500 highway lane miles, including U.S. 395, a major north-south artery connecting communities along the eastern spine of California.

In her note, El-Tawansy said "Ryan possesses a passion for leadership development, succession planning and building partnerships with external organizations."

Prior to his appointment as District 9 Director, he was Deputy District Director of Planning and Environmental Analysis for District 9. In Spring of 2019, he held an acting assignment as the Division Chief for Transportation Planning at Headquarters in Sacramento. Earlier in his career, he was Office Chief of Local Assistance for District 9 from 2007-2013. He has also held acting assignments as Chief of the Eastern Sierra Environmental Branch and as a Project Manager.

In recently marking the 100th anniversary of the establishment of District 9, Dermody said, “While much has changed over the past 100 years, the people who served District 9 throughout this past century all shared in the same commitment to safety and public service."

Caltrans will be conducting an executive search to fill the position of chief deputy director. The position, which must ultimately be appointed by the governor will require confirmation by the state Senate. The leadership change is one of several expected in the next year as the Newsom administration winds down.

A previous Asphalt Insider story about the retirement of Keever, capping a 40-year career in state service, is HERE.

Longtime industry leader Steve Ward with Pavement Recycling Systems will be retiring by year's end, Asphalt Insider has learned.

Ward is a member of the CalAPA Board of Directors and also chairman of the association's Legislative Committee. He has been active at the Legislature and in Washington, D.C, advocating on behalf of industry interests. He also previously served as past chairman of the Southern California Contractors Association.

Ward is widely known and respected for his calm demeanor and effective advocacy on behalf of industry interests. A fixture at CalAPA legislative events, he earned the trust of elected officials and staff for his encyclopedic knowledge of the construction industry and policy points that could either be helpful or harmful to the industry. He was a dogged champion of more funding for roads, which contributed to the passage of SB1, the $50 billion Road Repair & Accountability Act of 2017. The bill's author, state Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, and former Gov. Jerry Brown, personally commended Ward for his work helping to get the landmark bill across the finish line, and later to protect it at the ballot box.

“Over the past 10 years I have been actively engaged at the Board and/or Committee level of over a dozen trade associations and organizations, all with varying objectives, and this gives me a somewhat unique perspective of their value to our operations," Ward recently told Asphalt Insider. "With all having useful purpose, some stand out from my perspective. When recently asked by senior leadership at PRS where I felt PRS received the best value or ROI for our invested time and treasure, I had no problem pointing out CalAPA as a must-keep when I retire. The CalAPA staff and consultants operate the organization with the highest standards of professionalism in both the legislative and technical arenas, and even after my retirement, PRS should make every effort to remain associated with CalAPA and maintain a high level of involvement as it’s activities and activism are absolutely essential to the continued wellbeing of our employee-owners, and the asphalt industries that are the core of our businesses."

Prior to his current role at PRS as the company's primary government-relations representative, Ward worked for the company as senior manager, area manager, estimator and a business development manager. He previously was an operator and field operations chief, and in later years used that field experience to enrich his presentations to elected officials and regulators. He is also a military veteran, serving with distinction in the U.S. Naval Reserve from 1978 to 1984.

Ward also was a prominent member of the Caltrans-construction industry liaison committee, contributing sage advice and valuable perspective that was appreciated by all participants. Vince Fong, a longtime member of the Legislature and noted policy wonk before being elected to Congress last year, commended Ward on numerous occasions for his leadership and expertise in delving into policy details with gusto. Assemblyman Marc Levine, D-Marin County, also praised Ward in 2021 for his work in support legislation AB930, eventually signed into law, to minimize claims against excavation contractors.

Along with his passion for construction, Ward also demonstrated a passion for sustainability. Often during meetings with lawmakers he would point out to the window to an adjacent asphalt street to remind everyone that asphalt is 100% recyclable, and agencies can use that asset over and over to maintain their roads. "Recycling is in our company's name," he would often say.

Last year he introduced a special issue of the CalAPA magazine, California Asphalt, that spotlighted asphalt milling. That issue is on-line HERE.

"In my career I have been fortunate to watch the arc of this aspect of road-building and maintenance go from 'what's milling?' to now something that is part of almost every paving job. As we say on the cover of this magazine, it's 'not the same old grind.'"

Longtime construction industry leader and mentoring champion Miguel Galarza, president of Yerba Buena Engineering & Construction, recently took over as chairman of the Contractors State License Board.

Galarza is a familiar name to the asphalt pavement industry, having spoken in June at the CalAPA "Summit at the Summit" Executive Leadership Forum at Lake Tahoe. He was also featured in an exclusive interview that was published in CalAPA's association magazine, California Asphalt. That issue is on-line HERE.

Galarza, a 2020 appointee of Gov. Gavin Newsom, chaired his first meeting of the CSLB board on Sept. 5, and later posted on social media: "Today I am humbled to serve as the first Latino (Puerto Rican) contractor to chair this board -- an organization that has shaped the course of my professional and personal life."

"With hard work, great mentors, and a few good breaks along the way," he added, "I've been blessed with opportunities I never imagined when I first picked up a hammer as a young carpenter. As chair, I don't take lightly the responsibility of protecting the people of California, uplifting our industry, and ensuring that contractors are held to the highest standards of safety, quality and integrity."

The National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA), a CalAPA partner, will be hosting a free educational webinar Oct. 15 delving into key aspects of airfield longitudinal joint construction and deterioration. The webinar will take place from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. PST. To register, click HERE.

Longitudinal joint deterioration can be an issue of concern for airfield pavement performance. The webinar will present information on construction methods and maintenance of longitudinal joints for airport projects, and new treatments that may provide benefits to construction time and performance.

Webinar participants will learn:

• Why longitudinal joint performance can be a significant concern for airfield asphalt pavements.
• Current FAA specification requirements for longitudinal joint construction.
• Innovative treatments for longitudinal joints and the available data to compare the performance of treated joints to the current cutback joint requirement.
• Best practices for longitudinal joint maintenance.

The presenters will be Amlan Mukherjee, Senior Director, Sustainability & Intelligent Construction, NAPA, and Randy West, Director & Research Professor, National Center for Asphalt Technology (NCAT) at Auburn University. Both are familiar to CalAPA members, having conducted presentations and training classes at CalAPA events.

To view other free educational webinars, click HERE.

Each week we highlight a word, acronym or other term commonly used in the asphalt pavement industry in California.

HOT MIX ASPHALT (HMA): A controlled mixture of asphalt binder and well-graded, high quality aggregate compacted into a uniform layer of predetermined density. HMA pavements may also contain additives such as anti-stripping agents and polymers. HMA is used synonymously with asphalt concrete.

Each week we highlight a key point or best practice of interest to asphalt paving crews, inspectors and others working in the field. We welcome suggestions. More tips can be found in our "Asphalt Parking Lot Construction Checklist" HERE. Information on the CalAPA "Quality Paving Certificate" program is HERE.

RECORD RETENTION AFTER PROJECT COMPLETION: Take a final photograph or photographs of the site for your records and retain all records from the project including: copies of all truck delivery tickets and record of all the temperature recordings and compaction readings you took during the project.

Each week we highlight a term that is specific to climate-change issues related to the asphalt pavement industry. This feature is intended to raise awareness of the asphalt industry's climate-change initiatives and the specialized terminology that goes with them. More information on "The Road Forward" asphalt industry climate initiative can be found HERE. A recent CalAPA magazine story on the topic is HERE.

CLIMATE CHANGE: Change in temperature, precipitation or wind for longer than 10 years.

Editor's Note: As a convenience to our readers, Asphalt Insider reports the most current Caltrans "Statewide Crude Oil Price Index" posting. The department posts this monthly on its public website HERE. The index is used to calculate payment adjustments for paving asphalt under special provisions section "Payment Adjustments for Price Index Fluctuations" in those projects containing the section. The department posts the index on or about the first business day of the month using the daily Brent crude oil prices from the previous month as reported by Business Insider. Inquiries about the index should be directed to Caltrans at: Oil.Index@dot.ca.gov .

September 2025: $363.7 ($/ton)

"Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself."

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– George Bernard Shaw

We hope you enjoy CalAPA's Asphalt Insider newsletter. We are committed to providing you with the most up-to-date information on technical issues, regulation, news, analysis, people, events and trends in California that is of interest to the asphalt pavement industry and our various agency partners. Please note: This publication is 100% human-produced with 100% original content, and is only possible due to the generous support of CalAPA members. To subscribe to the newsletter, click HERE. For comments, questions or to suggest a story idea, click HERE. We are committed to promptly notifying our readers of any errors in this publication. Please click on the comment link above to alert the editor of any errors or omissions.

Sincerely,

Russell W. Snyder, CAE

Executive Director

The California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA)®