MoDOT chooses new director from New Hampshire

Faced with what Missouri Transportation Department officials have described as a financial crisis, the Transportation Commission selected a new department director with both state and national financial management experience.

State officials last week introduced Patrick McKenna, the former deputy commissioner for the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, to replace Interim Director Roberta Broeker, who will return to her previous position as MoDOT’s chief financial officer.

As deputy commissioner, McKenna was the department’s chief financial and operations officer. He previously served as the chief financial officer for the Office of the Secretary in the U.S. Senate.

Missouri Transportation Commission Chairman Stephen Miller said McKenna’s financial background was critical to his appointment in the nationwide search.

“We do have someone coming in that has the fiscal and financial knowledge and experience of a variety of different forms, and he’s going to meld with what we’re doing with our own ‘Road to Tomorrow’ effort in terms of finding innovative and creative ways to fund transportation going forward,” Miller said.

MoDOT officials repeatedly have warned the department is facing a financial crisis with insufficient revenues to fully maintain the entire state highway system.

According to MoDOT.org, the department’s budget was $1.3 billion in 2009, but as of 2014 the budget was only $700 million. In January, MoDOT announced it only has the resources for full maintenance and repair on less than a quarter of Missouri’s highway system.

At a news conference announcing his appointment, McKenna said New Hampshire faced similar problems. He said New Hampshire’s transportation system nearly went bankrupt a decade ago, and the state had not passed a revenue increase in more than 20 years before a gasoline tax increase went into effect last year.

“Many of the same problems are faced in New Hampshire as they are in Missouri with regard to the infrastructure,” McKenna said. “Not enough money for routine maintenance and upkeep has led to a declining condition of that very infrastructure that we all count on every day.”

McKenna said he doesn’t have an answer yet about how he is going to address funding for Missouri’s system. He talked with reporters about New Hampshire’s toll road system that generates $120 million per year.

McKenna acknowledged he comes from a state with a substantially smaller road system than Missouri.

“New Hampshire doesn’t compare well,” McKenna said. “We probably fit right into one of your districts here in the state of Missouri.”

Missouri has more than 33,000 miles of roadways and over 10,000 bridges, compared to New Hampshire’s 5,000 miles of roads and 2,500 bridges.

McKenna will officially begin work as MoDOT director Dec. 7.