Resilience Primer for Transportation Executives (2021)

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23   Conclusion Many of the challenges you face as a CEO will revolve around the resilience of the trans- portation system. How well your system can withstand events and how quickly your agency can restore services when they are affected determines your regional economy, your state population’s mobility and safety, and, possibly, your tenure. The public and their political representatives expect you to anticipate these events, have plans and take actions to mitigate the consequences, and be able to respond quickly when necessary. No matter what your state’s experiences have been—historically few disruptive events or many—you are responsible for managing existing infrastructure, improving the reliability and safety of the transportation network, and ensuring the continuation of operations during and after emergencies. Your end users of transportation assets and infrastructure expect you to do what’s needed to make the systems they count on resilient. The greatest gains in resilience occur when it is woven throughout a transportation agency—in planning and design, asset management, risk management, O&M, and performance management. As infrastructure agencies, transportation agencies are exceptionally positioned to take resilience actions, even when efforts to build community resilience can be complicated. Many stakeholders—federal, state, and local departments and agencies; national and community organizations; and the public—are involved in regional community resilience work. Goals can differ substantially, and differing interests want to tailor outcomes to their particular needs. Your involvement as the DOT CEO is a major part of securing community commitment to investment in resilience by building important partnerships across regions, sectors, and trans- portation modes. Fortunately, you are not alone. Engage with your peers to share your experiences. Make use of their replicable successes, learn from their disappointments, and discuss your own challenges and ideas. Resilience thrives on conversation and collaboration. C H A P T E R 4