September 27, 2021
KDOT engineer to speak about past, present and future of highway transportation in Kansas
Calvin Reed, director of engineering and design at the Kansas Department of Transportation, will deliver the inaugural Dr. Bob R. Snell Structural Engineering Lecture as part of the Civil Engineering Graduate Seminar Invited Lecture Series at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 29, in 1052 Rathbone Hall.
The lecture has been created to honor Robert R. Snell, a longtime K-State faculty member and benefactor who served as the department head of civil engineering from 1972 to 1992. Under his stewardship, the civil engineering department became a premier research, teaching and service unit at K-State.
Reed will describe how Kansas' current transportation system grew organically from a system of exploratory and farm-to-market trails early in the 20th century to what we know and use today. He will discuss how the promise of big data and technology along with external factors such as climate change and the changing demographics of our state, are posing new challenges to transportation professionals. While it is an exciting time to work in the transportation industry in Kansas; many of the decisions that are being made now will help set Kansas, and Kansans up for success in the future.