Nevada transportation director plots new direction

Susan Martinovich doesn't answer her cellphone during meetings.

But two years ago, the head of the Nevada Department of Transportation glanced at the incoming call, and panic struck. She recognized the 703 area code -- Virginia, the military.

She picked up; the voice at the other end said her son had been wounded in Afghanistan but offered few details. After catching the next flight back from Las Vegas to Carson City, Martinovich learned more.

Her son was with a group of fellow Marines who were checking homes for bombs. They were making two captured Taliban fighters open garage doors when there was an explosion. The Taliban fighters and two U.S. Marines were killed. Martinovich's son was badly injured.

Martinovich, who prefers to keep her personal life private, said her son is still recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and soon will return to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.

She acknowledged that his ordeal played a role in her decision to step down this summer after six years as leader of the state's transportation division.

"Life's too short," she said.

BRIDGE GEEK

Martinovich, who grew up in Carson City, embarked on her career in engineering by chance; the University of Nevada, Reno was offering scholarships to attract more women to the math and science fields. She soon discovered a passion for bridge design.

"I'm a bridge geek," she said.

Martinovich started with the Nevada department as an engineer straight out of UNR. She and her co-workers joked that they one day would lead the department and become president of the national organization of all the leaders of state transportation agencies.

Martinovich has done both, having recently finished her term as the national association's first female president. Now she is heading down a different highway.

Martinovich, 51, hasn't divulged much about what she will do next, but it is a safe bet that she will wind up with a national organization or transportation agency. She admits that's a possibility.

But she can look back at what she has accomplished with pride.

More than a decade ago, Martinovich designed the overpasses at U.S. Highway 95 and Alexander and Craig roads and Cheyenne Avenue. But as time has passed, those designs have become uninspiring given newer technology and designs.

As the state transportation chief, Martinovich was a frequent visitor to the Colorado River, where she kept tabs on the construction of the $240 million Hoover Dam bypass bridge -- a far cry from the overpasses she drew up as an engineer.

Martinovich's agency was a partner in building the span, which is the highest and longest single-span concrete arch bridge in the Western Hemisphere. It has been labeled a modern day civil engineering wonder and won the Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award from the American Society of Civil Engineers earlier this year.

In January, Martinovich watched another "first" for her division -- a bridge "slide." Crews hired by the Department of Transportation's built new bridges next to the aging spans along Interstate 15 in Mesquite. With the use of a temporary rail and a healthy dose of Dawn dish soap, the new bridges were slid into place after the old spans were demolished. The slide took about 72 hours, and interruptions to traffic were insignificant -- vehicles were ushered off the freeway and right back on.

Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez flew out for the slide and lauded Martinovich for experimenting with innovative methods to achieve projects without interrupting a key commercial corridor.

In addition to the $35 million taxpayers saved over traditional construction, the Transportation Department estimated it saved motorists $12 million in time and fuel costs.

"We stress innovation to get our projects delivered faster, better and smarter," Mendez said. "We want to see how we can raise the bar to deliver to the traveling public. Nevada has taken a lead role."

Under Martinovich's watch, the division also took the lead in the design-build concept, eliminating the bidding process for capital projects in an effort to save time and money. The widening of Interstate 15 between the Spaghetti Bowl and Craig Road was the first in the state using the method.

Because that project was such a success -- it was finished eight months early -- Martinovich opted to use the same design-build technique on the current widening project on the southern portion of Interstate 15.

The department's unique projects led to Martinovich being named one of the Top 25 newsmakers by the Engineering News-Record.

FRESH FACE

A long string of portraits lines the corridors of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials headquarters in Washington, D.C. The photos of the nonprofit organization's past presidents date to 1914, and each looks similar: suited men with stern expressions. Then there is the 2011 president, Susan Martinovich.

"It was like a breath of fresh air," Carlos Braceras, secretary-treasurer of the organization said of Martinovich's beaming image. "She sparkles."

In a male-dominated field, her personality was a welcome change.

"What a lot of people might think is you have to make your personality fit the position," Braceras said. "People who are successful bring their personality to the position, and she brought her personality."

Martinovich made a strong first impression on Braceras the first time they met in 2001. Representatives from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico were seated around a conference table prepared to take on the country's biggest transportation issues. It was Martinovich's first meeting, and she wasn't shy.

"You're sitting there with your state's name in front of you, and it's very intimidating," Braceras said. "She was more than willing to voice her opinion. She was actively engaged from Day One."

That has benefited Nevada, Braceras said. Martinovich was open to different engineering ideas and brought them to Nevada. The bridge slide and the design-build model are a couple of examples. Nevada was barely on the map when it came to innovative engineering before her tenure. Now it is a state others look to as a model.

"She is incredibly deep on the subjects," Braceras said. "She is a hard-core engineer."

Jacob Snow, former general manager of the Regional Transportation Commission, complimented Martinovich for her easy-going personality. While regional and state transportation officials don't always get along well with state-level transportation officials, Snow and Martinovich worked well together on regional projects.

"Susan has always been a collaborator and a cooperator," Snow said. "I think it's the attitudes of people like Susan, who basically said we might have our differences but let's work them out. All relationships are defined by reciprocity, and ours certainly was."

SURVIVING THE ECONOMY

It's not always easy to sell new road projects, especially during a down economy.

Southern Nevadans grouse about cone-strewn roadways and detours at every turn. Martinovich said getting the public to understand why projects are started at the same time -- and many times in the same location -- is difficult.

Roads and highways need to be maintained or widened to accommodate a growing population. Much of her department's funding comes from the federal government with strings attached. Her goal was to have a list of priority projects ready to go so that work could start immediately after the money became available.

"The federal funding and how we have to deliver, those are rules that are not easy to understand, and people don't want to hear it," she said. "I have lots of priority projects because I don't want to leave anything on the table. With federal funding, if you don't spend it, you lose it."

Martinovich has watched as her department's $800 million a year budget has shrunk in large part because of lower fuel tax revenues. Gasoline taxes have not been raised since 1993, and, with the increasing number of fuel efficient and electric cars, revenues have declined considerably.

As a result, projects that the department once prioritized have gone by the wayside. Some roads that need to be widened must wait until the funding becomes available.

"We'd be doing some more overlay, repaving," Martinovich said. "We'd like to be proactive rather than reactive.

Her leadership in a tough economy spilled over into her role with the national organization, too.

"She accomplished what was important but had to stop doing the less important stuff," Braceras said. "It's easier to add than cut, but she was a great leader."

LOOKING BACK

Martinovich leaves the department studying ways to generate more funding, but she is proud of her accomplishments while at the helm of the agency.

Whether residents like it or not, Martinovich said the widening of U.S. Highway 95 will do wonders for traffic flow. The high-occupancy vehicle lanes are a point of contention with some drivers, but the director thinks they will alleviate backups and encourage motorists to carpool. The express lanes on Interstate 15 also have benefited motorists traveling through town.

Engineering isn't what it used to be. It's not just about roads and bridges and interchanges. These days, engineers also must think about pedestrians and aesthetics. That was the greatest adjustment.

"We have to think more about how these projects are affecting the community," Martinovich said. "The plants and animals on the freeway, they soothe drivers, and they also discourage graffiti and littering."

Times have changed, and Martinovich has adjusted. Now she is heading down a new road.

Contact reporter Adrienne Packer at apacker@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2904.