Maine Gov. Janet Mills announced this week that Bruce Van Note, commissioner of the Maine Department of Transportation (MaineDOT), will retire from his position on August 15.
Mills nominated Van Note as commissioner of MaineDOT in 2019. His tenure as commissioner culminates a professional transportation career of over 30 years in Maine, which also included a dozen years as deputy commissioner of MaineDOT from 2002-2014, and as director of policy and planning for the Maine Turnpike Authority (MTA) from 2014 through 2019.
“Bruce Van Note has set a high standard for practicality and productivity and has been an invaluable member of my cabinet. Together we faced pandemic and post-pandemic workforce challenges, the allocation of new Federal funds, balancing legislative priorities, the need for public transportation in a rural state, and the constant need to protect the public safety on our highways,” said Mills. “As an engineer and attorney, Bruce is at home working both in the field and in the State House, engineering ways to adapt our highways to alternative modes of transportation, to make travel as safe as possible, to enact policy in nonpartisan manner, and, very simply, to fix the potholes. Bruce leaves a remarkable legacy as MaineDOT commissioner. I will miss his contributions to my administration and I wish him nothing but the best following his retirement.”
“Serving as MaineDOT commissioner has been the honor and privilege of my life. I want to thank Governor Mills for giving me the opportunity to serve the people of Maine, the state I love. With her support, and through the efforts of the MaineDOT team, our consultant and contractor partners, and lawmakers at the federal and state levels, we have made a real difference in safety, economic opportunity, and quality of life in Maine,” said Van Note. “There have been many challenges to overcome including the pandemic, significant increases in construction costs, workforce shortages, extreme storms, and more. They made this one of the toughest jobs you’ll ever love, but finding solutions is what we do, and throughout it all, I’m proud of the smart and steady progress we’ve made for the people of
Upon Van Note’s retirement, the Governor will appoint MaineDOT Deputy Commissioner Dale Doughty as Acting Commissioner. Doughty has nearly three decades of experience with MaineDOT. Prior to assuming the deputy commissioner’s role, Doughty has served as director of the bureau of planning and director of the Bureau of Maintenance and Operations.
The Commissioner’s position is a cabinet-level appointment, subject to a hearing before the Legislature’s Transportation Committee and confirmation by the Maine State Senate.
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