IRTBA will be its members’ indispensable resource for networking, training, education, business services, innovative technologies, and positive experiences. Our 2020 business improvement goal successes in quarters one and two include:
- Hosted 17 Road Builder University webinars on various topics such as a four-hour, virtual safety training on Excavation Hazards in Construction; Navigating Employment and Labor Issues in the COVID Era; The Secret of Fraud Prevention; Mastering Bid Protests Concerning Contracts with the Illinois Tollway and IDOT; Association Health Plan - Can it Work for Your Company?; Positioning your Business to Thrive in the “New Normal”; MBE/WBE/DBE Certification & Compliance; Revisiting the 2020 Economic & Construction Outlook – A Mid-Pandemic Perspective; Tracking Federal Regulatory Changes; COVID-19: Economic Fallout; Primes & Subs – Navigating Relationships, and Mastering Bid Protests.
- Held multiple virtual town halls with distinguished heads of prominent state and local agencies to give members updates on new policies and procedures in the COVID Era – featuring virtual meetings with Senate President Don Harmon, a panel forum with all six collar county engineers, IRTBA members’ introductory update with CDOT Commissioner Gia Biagi, an Aviation Update with CDA Commissioner Jamie Rhee, a forum to learn about funding public transit with RTA Executive Director Leanne Redden, as well as a panel about COVID precautions, policies and procedures at IDOT with Secretary Omer Osman, Tim Kell, and Tony Quigley.
- Shattered previous attendance records for webinars with our largest webinar to date – a virtual Town Hall Meeting with Senate President Don Harmon. The eLearning town hall session had a record-breaking 232 people on and featured insider info on the difficulties the State of Illinois faces in light of the economic downturn associated with COVID-19, an update on a number of bipartisan working groups, the need for a budget before the end of the fiscal year, the transportation lockbox, Fair Tax, Fair Maps, Right to Work, local sales taxes, and many other topics.
- Hosted three virtual cooperative committee meetings with the Tollway and IDOT, allowing non-committee members to participate for the first time ever, which allowed significantly higher participation levels – one meeting even garnered 81 attendees!
- State Representative Emanuel Chris Welch delivered a well-received keynote speech at our 35th Annual Convention in Maui, highlighting significant achievements in Springfield and what to expect in the coming year.
- Advocated with agencies to allow expediting schedules on certain construction projects due to lower traffic volumes.
- Informed members about a requirement by local public agencies to have trained flaggers and suggested solutions to train flaggers virtually due to the COVID-19 restrictions on gathering.
- Held our biennial Chairperson Training virtually for the first time. Followed up the training with a virtual meet-and-greet and networking session via WebEx.
- Communicated newly-released e-ticketing policies that IDOT and the Tollway would be allowing with regard to electronically-submitted material delivery tickets as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Welcomed CDOT Commissioner Gia Biagi in her first address to IRTBA members for a captivating forum to discuss the latest CDOT policies and procedures amid the COVID pandemic, as well as an inside look at the commissioner's vision for the transportation hub of the Midwest -- the City of Chicago's multi-modal network.
- Informed members about the Illinois Department of Public Health’s (IDPH) new guidance to assist members of the general public and business owners with any questions related to testing for COVID-19.