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Robert E. “Bob” Alger, P.E., president and chief executive officer of Cheshire, Conn.-based The Lane Construction Corporation, has been elected 2018–2019 American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) chair. The association made the announcement October 1 at its national convention in New York City.
Alger’s entire 40-year career in the transportation construction industry has been spent with Lane, where he started as a job engineer in Pennsylvania and rose through the ranks as a project manager, district manager and executive. He was named president and CEO in 2001.
Under his leadership, the company has grown from a regional Northeast contractor to a national transportation and heavy civil construction business. Sales revenues have grown from $350 million in 2001 to $1.7 billion today.
His roster of ARTBA volunteer leadership positions includes senior vice chair, first vice chair, Contractors Division president, Contractors Division first vice president, ARTBA Foundation trustee, and Trans2020: “MAP-21 Policy Promotion, Implementation & Funding Enhancement Task Force” co-chair.
Alger’s leadership roles extend to other industry groups. He is a founding member of the Construction Industry Ethics and Compliance Initiative (CIECI) and Construction Industry Safety Initiative (CISI) group, which promotes Safety Week annually across the country. He is a past president of The Moles, The Beavers and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Construction Institute. He is also a past chair of the Construction Industry Roundtable.
He has been honored with the ASCE Outstanding Project and Leadership Award (2013), The Moles Award for Outstanding Achievement in Construction (2011) and Outstanding Engineering Alumni Award from Penn State’s College of Engineering (2006).
Alger outlined his agenda during a presentation at the ARTBA convention. He said ARTBA would remain laser-focused on its core mission of transportation market development by working to achieve three main goals: a permanent revenue solution for the Highway Trust Fund, passage of a new infrastructure investment package that includes significant investments in the National Highway Freight Network, and laying the groundwork for the scheduled 2020 reauthorization of the FAST Act highway and transit investment law.
The association will also “continue to collaborate with federal agencies to build a regulatory environment conducive to more efficient and safe project delivery,” he said.
Special focus will be given to expanding the number of firms and organizations supporting ARTBA’s Transportation Makes America Work lobbying and advocacy communications program to help ensure the industry has the necessary financial resources to achieve its legislative and regulatory goals, Alger said.
In the safety arena, the continued growth of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-accredited Safety Certification for Transportation Project Professionals™ (SCTPP) program, is another priority. The SCTPP was launched by industry executives and safety leaders in fall 2016.
“Safety training and education have always been core ARTBA competencies,” Alger said. “We will continue to build greater awareness and participation in safety certification program by contractors and public agencies.”
Finally, Alger highlighted his plans to engage ARTBA officers and directors, the Industry Leader Development Council and Women Leaders Council to increase “peer-to-peer” membership development outreach.