President Bush has nominated Rick Capka to become the new Federal Highway Administrator. Capka has been serving as Acting Administrator since late July when Mary Peters stepped down after completing work on the SAFETEA-LU highway bill.
Capka has strong support among highway advocates and his Senate confirmation process is unlikely to be controversial. Capka is considered to be a knowledgeable highway professional. Prior to joining FHWA, Capka led the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority (MTA) during much of the construction of “The Big Dig”, the largest highway project in American history. Before joining MTA, Capka rose through the ranks of the U.S. Corps of Engineers over 29 years, working on numerous engineering projects worldwide.