PLANNING DISTRICT COMMISSIONS PRESENT THE ROBERT W. BAKER ACHIEVEMENT AWARD TO SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION AUBREY L. LAYNE, JR.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FEBRUARY 3, 2017
Contact:
Connie Long
VAPDC Administrator
757-412-2664
Richmond, VA - The Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions (VAPDC) presented Secretary of Transportation, Aubrey L. Layne, Jr. with the Robert W. Baker Achievement Award at the Association's Annual Awards Dinner in Richmond last night.
Secretary Layne was appointed by Governor Terry McAuliffe as Secretary of Transportation for the Commonwealth in 2014. As Secretary, Layne oversees seven transportation agencies with more than 10,000 employees and combined budgets of more than $6 billion. Prior to this appointment, he represented the Hampton Roads area on the Commonwealth Transportation Board from 2009 until January 2014.
"Secretary Layne's leadership in advancing the award-winning Smart Scale program established a process for prioritization of transportation projects based on need for Virginia's scarce funding resources," said Bob Crum, Executive Director, Hampton Roads Planning District Commission.
A Peninsula native and former Virginia Beach businessman, Layne has been the architect behind the adoption and implementation of a $14.4 billion six-year plan that, for the first time ranks and fully funds transportation projects across the state, based on quantifiable needs instead of political clout. He helped push legislation through the General Assembly to address the State's most congested highway-Interstate 66 and worked with legislators to establish a policy on tolling Virginia's highways. Secretary Layne is also pushing ahead with a project to expand the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel while trying to resolve passenger rail service in Ashland and Hanover County. Layne's most ambitious project will be a strategic plan for the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport that Virginia operates at Wallops Island.
Layne exemplifies the values of the Robert W. Baker Award through his outstanding leadership while working in partnership with MPO's, planning districts, transit agencies and local governments to deliver a transportation system that promotes economic competitiveness across the Commonwealth. Past recipients include A. Linwood Holton, W. Tayloe Murphy and other notable Virginians.
Planning District Commissions were established by the General Assembly in 1969. There are 21 PDCs and regional Commissions in Virginia made up of elected official and citizens appointed by local government. The purpose of the Planning District Commissions is to encourage and facilitate regional solutions to problems of area-wide significance. This is done by promoting the efficient development of the physical, social, and economic policies of all districts by assisting local governments to plan for the future. The PDCs of Virginia have joined together to create the Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions to share best practices, and further regionalism across the commonwealth. For information about VAPDC visit the website at
www.vapdc.org.
