 The Louis Berger Group, Inc.
Telephone: 919-961-7148
E-Mail: leighblane@yahoo.com
Years experience in current field: 20
Position/Title: Manager, Transportation Policy
EDUCATION: North Carolina State University, Bachelors of Science in Civil Engineering, 1984-1989
EXPERTISE: Community Impacts and Context Sensitive Solutions
RELATED TOPICS/EXPERIENCES: Currently, Leigh Lane is employed by The Louis Berger Group, one of the leading infrastructure engineering, environmental science and economic development operations in the world. In her role as Manger of Transportation Policy, she works to develop effective and efficient processes that bridge engineering considerations with community/environmental considerations to advance project delivery and customer service.
Leigh’s in-depth knowledge of the transportation delivery process stems from 15 years of service with the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT). She worked as a transportation engineer managing some of the largest and most complex planning and environmental studies in the history of NCDOT. One of these projects, Smith Creek Parkway (a.k.a. MLK Boulevard), was recognized nationally as a CSS project of excellence. Her experience with successfully completing numerous projects with controversial community related issues lead to her promotion as head of Public Involvement and Community Studies. In this role with NCDOT, she managed the department’s program for community impact assessment, public involvement and environmental justice and developed department-wide policies in this areas.
Over the last five years, Leigh has used her breadth and depth of experience to develop a three day CSS course for one of the largest CSS training programs in the country (NCDOT). She has trained over 1300 professionals in CSS. In addition, she has developed FHWA’s Community Impact Assessment course and delivered this course to numerous state DOTs. She continues to be a pioneer in the field of advancing tools and techniques for CSS and CIA as is evidenced by her role as Principle Investigator for two NCHRP studies, one dealing with understanding how multi-disciplinary teams can contribute to CSS applications and another that focuses on improved methods for assessing social, cultural, and economic effects of transportation projects.
Leigh’s work in both Context Sensitive Solutions and Community Impacts have lead to national recognition as chair of TRB’s CIA Subcommittee, member of TRB’s Social and Economic Factors in Transportation and Environmental Justice committees and member of TRB CSS Task Force. She has presented papers and made presentations in both national and international venues on CSS and community impacts related topics. Leigh is also a trained facilitator.
Recent Projects, Publications and Accomplishments Include:
-
“Integrating Context Sensitive Solutions in Day to Day Activities: Information from a Post Training Survey”, Transportation Research Board, submitted August 1, 2006, accepted for presentation at 2007 Annual Meeting.
-
“Roundtable on Emerging Community Impact Assessment Research Needs”, National CIA Conference, Denver, Colorado, July, 2006.
-
“Community Impact Assessment Practice: Where We’ve Been, Where We Are, and Where We’re Going”, Paper and Presentation, Transportation Research Board’s Annual Conference, Washington D.C., January, 2006.
-
“Community Needs with Multi-Modal Planning”, Panel Presentation/Discussion, Transportation Research Board’s Summer Conference, Boston, Massachusetts, July, 2005.
-
Community Impact Assessment Practice in the US Transportation Industry, Paper and Presentation, International Association of Impact Assessment Annual Conference, Boston, Massachusetts, May, 2005.
-
Context Sensitive Solutions Training Experience, Paper and Presentation, Transportation Research Board’s Annual Conference, Washington, D.C., January, 2005.
-
“Lessons from the Field: Little Things to Know about People”, 4th National Community Impact Assessment Conference, Portland, Maine, August, 2004.
-
“Transportation Design for Livable Communities & Context Sensitive Solutions”, Focus on Community: Best Practices in Transportation: Florida DOT, February, 2004.
-
“Community Impact Assessment in Rural Settings”, Transportation Research Board’s CIA Workshop, Washington, D.C., January, 2004.
-
“Context Sensitive Solutions: A Better Way”, Transportation Research Board A1FO2, Environmental Committee, Summer Meeting in Wilmington, NC, July, 2003.
-
“Context Sensitive Solutions and Transportation Decision-making”, Durham Chapel Hill Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization, NC, June, 25, 2003.
-
“Context Sensitive Solutions”, Annual North Carolina Traffic Engineering Conference, High Point, NC, May 13, 2003.
-
“Community Impact Assessment: A Process For Better Decisions”, National Community Impact Assessment Conference, Madison, Wisconsin, August, 2002.
-
“To Be or Not To Be, Smith Creek Parkway Project, Wilmington, NC”, Southern Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (SASHTO), Asheville, NC, September, 2001.
-
Served on National Highway Cooperative Research Program (NCHRP) Project 08-36 Committee, “Effective Methods for Environmental Justice Assessment.”
-
Served on the NCHRP Committee for Project 08-41, “Technical Methods to Support Analysis of Environmental Justice Issues.”, 1999-2001.
-
Acknowledged reviewer for NCHRP Report #456 entitled “Guidebook for Assessing the Social and Economic Effects of Transportation Projects”.
[back to top]
|
| |
|
