VDOT construction team earns national recognition

The Virginia Department of Transportation’s’ Northern Virginia District Quality Assurance Team was awarded the prestigious “Making a Difference Award” by the National Partnership for Highway Quality for significantly increasing the quality of construction and specification compliance throughout Northern Virginia.

VDOT’s’ overall compliance rating for construction rose from 87 to 92 percent through a series of initiatives that include the development of an inspector quick reference guide, weekly e-newsletter, mentoring program and on-the-job training.

“Through dedication and hard work of our employees in Northern Virginia, VDOT increased its environmental compliance by 10.5 percent and its safety compliance by nearly 17 percent,” said John DePasquale, VDOT assistant district engineer for construction. “These scores represent the highest increase in environmental compliance and the second highest increase in safety throughout the agency.”

The 92 percent compliance score was derived from a random sampling of 17 projects that underwent an independent review and scored on a 100-point scale looking at overall construction quality in the area of administration, safety, drainage, earthwork, environment, pavement, structures and traffic management.