Excellence in Utility email

This collection of information is voluntary and will be used to accept nominations for the collection for FHWA’s Excellence in Right-of-Way Awards Program and Utility Relocation and Accommodation Awards Program Public reporting burden is estimated to average 2 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Please note that an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control number for this collection is 2125-XXXX. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to: Michael Howell Information Collection Clearance Officer, Federal Highway Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20590.

Excellence in Utility Relocation and Accommodation Awards Nomination Process (email).

The FHWA is pleased to announce the call to submit nominations for the 2014 Excellence in Utility Relocation and Accommodation Awards. This biennial awards program recognizes innovative utility relocation and accommodation practices and showcases outstanding utility programs, initiatives, technologies and projects. This program also recognizes individuals who have significantly enhanced how their organization or agency relocates or accommodates utilities on surface transportation improvement projects.

The division offices are asked to encourage their State, local and private sector partners to submit entries for this year’s awards. Nomination forms, available at xxx.dot.gov, a written endorsement by a State Department of Transportation, and at least one photograph of the project will be accepted electronically through 11:59pm EST on January 31, 2014 at [email protected].

Awards will be presented in the following five categories:

• Project Development—demonstrating the ability to plan and design surface transportation projects involving complex utility coordination.

• Construction Management—recognizing creative solutions to utility related challenges encountered during project construction.

• Innovation—rewarding the ability to incorporate new technologies or processes to enhance utility related projects, or an organizations’ utility coordination program.

• Utility Program Performance—recognizing programs, policies, initiatives and individuals that have advanced or led innovative or new utility accommodation and relocation practices or provided lasting contributions to an agency or the highway and utility communities.

• Incentives for Utility Relocation—demonstrating the benefits of using incentives to relocate and accommodate utilities.

Anyone may nominate an individual, team, process, initiative or surface transportation project located on the NHS or that used Federal-aid highway funding between January 1, 2011 and September 30, 2013. Division offices will be offered the opportunity to provide comments on any nominations that are received within their State. Award winners will be recognized during AASHTO’s Right-of-Way and Utility Conference to be held April 27-30, 2014, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The division offices are encouraged to identify and nominate at least one utility practitioner to serve on the panel of judges. Potential candidates may come from a variety of organizational backgrounds (e.g., State departments of transportation, local agencies, academia, and private contractors) and can be nominated through this same Web site. The judging of nominees will be performed electronically, eliminating the need for judges to travel.

For more information on the 2014 Excellence in Utility Relocation and Accommodation Awards program, please see xxx.dot.gov or contact Mr. Ken Leuderalbert at [email protected].