Paula Hammond  was appointed Secretary of the Washington State Department of Transportation in August 2007 by Governor Christine Gregoire. Hammond manages an agency of 6,800 employees, with responsibility of 20,000 lane miles of highways, 3,500 bridges, general aviation airports, passenger- and freight-rail programs, and the Washington State ferry system, the nation’s largest.

WSDOT is nearing completion of the state’s largest capital program ($15.5 billion) in the agency’s 104-year history, begun in 2003. Hammond has committed her efforts to transparent project delivery and development of sustainable investment strategies for long-term safety, preservation and maintenance of the state’s infrastructure. Her key initiative is the development of Moving Washington, the state’s program to fight congestion and reduce emissions. In her 32 years with WSDOT, Hammond has worked in all areas of the department’s capital delivery, operations and policy programs.

She graduated from Oregon State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering and is a professional engineer.

Boards and associations:

• AASHTO Standing Committee on Highways, Chair
• AASHTO Leadership on High Speed & Intercity Passenger Rail, Chair
• AASHTO Sustainable Transportation Steering Committee, Chair
• AASHTO Standing Committee on Performance Management, Vice Chair
• WASHTO Past President, 2009
• States for Passenger Rail Coalition (SPRC), Chair
• Transportation Research Board Executive Committee, member
• Washington Transportation Improvement Board, member since 1995
• Women’s Transportation Seminar, Woman of the Year 2011
• Inducted into OSU Engineering Academy of Distinguished Engineers, 2008

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