VTCA-VDOT Consultant Forum: Bringing Virginia’s Transportation Community Together

Virginia’s transportation program is growing, changing and becoming more complex—and the professionals responsible for delivering that program continue to find value in coming together to talk about where it is headed. That was the central message of this year’s VTCA-VDOT Consultant Forum, held September 1 under the theme “Virginia Transportation: Investment, Innovation, Impact.” Once again, the Forum reached capacity, attracting approximately 400 transportation professionals, including about 125 representatives of public-sector agencies and 275 from the private sector.

The gathering brought together a broad cross-section of Virginia’s transportation community. Public-sector participants included representatives from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (VDRPT), the Federal Highway Administration’s Virginia Division, and numerous local governments. Industry participation was led by consulting engineering firms, with several heavy highway contractors also represented. That diversity is one of the Forum’s defining strengths. The Forum provides an opportunity for the public and private sectors to hear directly from transportation leaders and staff—and, just as importantly, to hear from one another.

A conversation about where Virginia transportation is headed

The Forum opened with comments from Jessica Colbert, VTCA Vice President, and Erin Donovan, PE, Chair of VTCA’s Engineering Consultant Leadership Committee (ECLC).

Colbert brought a contractor’s perspective to the discussion. She currently serves as Director of Project Risk for Allan Myers and is a VTCA officer and Chair of the Contractor Leadership Committee. Donovan brings more than 25 years of transportation engineering and business leadership experience to her role. As Vice President and Virginia Area Manager for GFT Infrastructure, she works across Virginia and the District of Columbia on strategic growth, operations and transportation capabilities.

Their opening comments set the stage for a day focused not simply on the size of Virginia’s transportation program, but on how that program will be delivered in an environment where technology, policy, funding priorities and project-delivery practices are continually evolving.

Looking toward the future

The morning keynote reinforced that forward-looking perspective. Brad Waid, an international keynote speaker, author, futurist and emerging-technology leader, presented “Racing the Future—The Technologies, Trends & Innovations Shaping Tomorrow.” Brad’s appearance was particularly fitting for a transportation industry confronting rapid advances in technology.

From statewide vision to project delivery

The Forum’s first general session moved from the future to the immediate direction of Virginia transportation. The session included an update from the FHWA Virginia Division, followed by a Virginia leadership panel featuring Secretary of Transportation Nick Donohue, VDRPT Director Mariia Zimmerman and VDOT Commissioner Stephen Brich. The program provided an opportunity to examine transportation from multiple perspectives, including the Commonwealth’s broader transportation priorities and the respective roles of transit and highways.

The morning also included the VTCA Transportation Engineering Awards, recognizing outstanding work by Virginia’s transportation engineering community. 

The balance between statewide policy and practical project delivery continued through updates on VDOT’s NEPA Assignment and Professional Service Procurement programs. These sessions addressed areas that directly affect how consultants work with VDOT and how projects move from planning and environmental review into design and implementation.

A deep dive into VDOT’s program

The afternoon sessions turned to a series of updates from VDOT divisions and partner organizations. Presentations covered Structure & Bridge, Location & Design, Local Assistance, and Construction. The Location & Design discussion included landscaping policy, while the Local Assistance segment addressed the Trail Surface Guide. Together, the presentations highlighted the range of technical disciplines and project types that now make up Virginia’s transportation program.

For the consultant community, these technical and policy updates are an important component of the Forum. Changes in design policy, construction practices, procurement procedures and program requirements can have a direct effect on the way firms organize their work, staff projects and coordinate with VDOT and local clients.

Choosing the right way to deliver projects

The day concluded with a discussion of one of the most consequential questions facing transportation agencies and the industry today: Once the decision is made to move forward, how should a project be delivered? The closing session, “Project Delivery Decision Process,” explored how alternative procurement projects are selected, who makes those decisions and what factors drive the choice to use alternative delivery, primarily design-build. A second portion considered what project characteristics should be evaluated when determining whether alternative procurement can provide benefits.

The panel brought together perspectives from VDOT, industry and localities, with Shailendra Patel serving as moderator and panelists Jeff Roby, Hal Jones, Steve Kuntz, Bill Arel and Brad Bushey participating in the discussion.

The subject was an appropriate conclusion to a day focused on investment, innovation and impact. As Virginia’s transportation program expands, the question is increasingly not simply whether a project can be delivered, but how it can best be delivered to achieve the desired outcome for the traveling public.

More than a conference

The formal program concluded with a reception, providing an opportunity for the day’s participants to continue conversations that began in the meeting room. That networking component is an important part of what makes the Consultant Forum distinctive.

Virginia is making significant investments in transportation. At the same time, the industry is confronting new technologies, evolving procurement practices, alternative delivery models and changing expectations about how transportation infrastructure should serve communities. The 2026 Forum provided a venue for those issues to be discussed together—and offered a reminder that the Commonwealth’s transportation future will depend not only on the resources invested in it, but also on the ability of public agencies and the private sector to work together effectively to turn those investments into results.