Jennifer Cohan, Secretary of the Delaware Department
of Transportation, and vice chair of the ITS America
board, reveals how she’s prioritizing the different
mobility needs of tourists, residents and those with
disabilities in her state, as well as managing
transportation networks in the face of climate change
J ennifer Cohan is the third female ever to
become the Secretary at the Delaware
Department of Transportation (DelDOT)
and although she’s conscious of being
a woman in a senior position in a maledominated
environment, she doesn’t let
that phase her.
Cohan is vice chair of the ITS America
board and at the organization’s 2019 Annual
Meeting, which took place in from June 4-7
in Washington DC, her voice was crucial in
a number of discussions about key
industry topics.
While taking the time to sit
down and speak with me at the
event, she jokes, “Today, I was
on a panel with six men and
just me. I sat right in the
middle, held my own
the whole time and
kicked their butts! It’s
been great.”
A sisterhood
According to Cohan,
the small group of
female heads of DOTs
and transportation
agencies look out for
each other at every
opportunity. “There’s a
record number of us: 14,
012 Traffic Technology International July/August 2019
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Interviewed by Rachelle Harry
Jennifer Cohan |
and most of us are located in the Northeast
of the USA,” she says. “We get to see each
other at Annual Meetings, such as this one
and the American Association of State
Highway and Transportation Officials
(AASHTO) one. We also do dinners and gettogethers
to maintain a sense of camaraderie.
“We call ourselves the ‘AASHTO
Divas’,” she laughs, “and we really like
to stick together.”
This sense of camaraderie is maintained
in Cohan’s work in Delaware. “I know
the other two female former
Secretaries very well,” she explains.
“One of them is my dear friend
and we work together to do
great things in Delaware,
which has enabled me be
vice chair of ITS America
and chair of the
Cooperative Automated
Transportation
Coalition.”
Weather warnings
Cohan has been
Secretary of DelDOT
for five years. During
that time, she has had
to ensure that the state’s
transportation networks
operate as seamlessly as
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