FHWA chief Shailen Bhatt steps down

After just 20 months on the job, Federal Highway Administration head Shailen Bhatt has departed for the private sector.

Bhatt announced Thursday that he’s taken a position at Montreal-based engineering services firm AtkinsRéalis. He joins as senior vice president and chief operating officer for the U.S., Latin America and Minerals & Metals.

Current FHWA Deputy Administrator Kristin White will serve as acting administrator, pending the naming of Bhatt’s successor, the agency said.

White was appointed deputy administrator in May 2024. She joined the agency July 2023 as chief counsel, “playing a pivotal role in advising FHWA senior leadership and staff in advancing key FHWA programs and initiatives as part of President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,” the agency said. She was previously chief operating officer of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America, a nonprofit founded by Congress to advance safety and mobility through transportation technology and innovation and before that was co-founder and executive director of Minnesota’s Office of Connected and Automated Vehicles.

“It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as the 21st Administrator” of the FHWA, Bhatt posted on social media. “To serve during this time, with a President and Secretary who have been such impactful leaders, is an immense privilege. I look forward to seeing the multitude of projects that will transform our country for decades to come.”

President Biden tapped Bhatt in July 2022 and he was sworn in on Jan. 21, 2023. He took over at a key time for the agency, which has a major role in the implementation of the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The FHWA oversees the distribution of roughly $350 billion of IIJA funds for roads and bridges.

Bhatt has worked at three state transportation agencies — in Kentucky, Delaware and Colorado — and at the FHWA under President Obama. Prior to his latest FHWA stint, Bhatt was senior vice president of global transportation innovation at infrastructure consulting firm AECOM.

At the Colorado DOT, Bhatt oversaw the expansion of I-70 through Denver, a controversial $1.2 billion public-private partnership that sparked community opposition and was the largest highway project in CDOT’s history. He also launched a program called Road X, which was the first state DOT-based P3 aimed at using technology to manage transportation challenges.