Aug. 30 , 2005

For more information contact:
Dena Gray-Fisher
dena.grayfisher @dot.iowa.gov
515-239-1922

Governor accepts Wandro resignation

AMES , Iowa – Governor Tom Vilsack has accepted the resignation of Mark F. Wandro as director of the Iowa Department of Transportation; his resignation is effective Friday, Sept. 30. Wandro was appointed director Aug. 30, 1999, by Governor Vilsack and Lt. Governor Sally Pederson .

“It has been an honor and a pleasure to have worked for Governor Vilsack and Lieutenant Governor Pederson. Iowa is truly a wonderful place to work and raise a family, and it has been my privilege to have assisted the Vilsack/Pederson Administration in making this a reality for others,” said Wandro.

A civil engineer and land surveyor, Wandro has accepted the position of executive vice-president for the co nsulting engineering firm Snyder & Associates, Inc. of Ankeny , which provides municipalities, schools, public agencies, and private developers with comprehensive engineering and planning services.

Under Wandro's leadership, the Department of Transportation accomplished several major initiatives aimed at enhancing the efficiency of the department and improving transportation services for the people of Iowa . Some of those initiatives included:

•  streamlining and restructuring the DOT to refocus its efforts on the department's core services of safety, road building and maintenance, issuance of driver licenses, and snow and ice control;

•  decentralizing programs and services so they could be more accessible to the people of Iowa ;

•  increasing supervisory spans of control, thus reducing the layers of management and expediting customer response times;

•  extending the driver license renewal period from four to five years to reduce administrative costs and the burden of renewal caused to motorists;

•  modifying the five-year transportation program to reflect more realistic long-term planning objectives and a balanced construction program;

•  expediting the transfer of jurisdiction process on a backlog of eligible roadways that no longer met the service thresholds of the state highway system;

•  increasing the investment in the resurfacing, restoration and rehabilitation program to preserve the state's existing infrastructure; and

•  developing and implementing electronic business solutions to reduce operational costs and make services more accessible to the public.

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