David Hutchinson has been named Executive Director of the Highways Term Maintenance Association, as announced today by the HTMA Executive Board. The growth of the association, and its aggressive strategy for representing its members on key issues, led the Executive Board to bring in a talented leader in the UKs highways management and maintenance industry.

The Executive Board created the position and subsequently appointed the former President of the Institution of Highways and Transportation (IHT) to support its strategy and to ensure that the HTMA truly represents the interests of the highways maintenance sector. In addition, David will play a key role in coordinating all lobbying activities for the HTMA. On a day-to-day basis, David will be working closely with the HTMAs various working groups, including those focused on safety, sustainability, people, and procurement issues. David will be reporting directly to the six-member HTMA Executive Board.

Davids extensive experience and exposure to the challenges of the roads industry provide a unique skill set necessary to build awareness, facilitate discussion, and gain consensus among the various stakeholders.

The HTMA has recently worked with the Highways Agency and Driving Standards Agency in the development of the Green Driving Booklet, an eco-driving standard, and is also active in dealing with some of the industrys biggest issues, including road worker safety, alcohol and drug testing and skills shortages.

"Part of our role as the HTMA Executive is to ensure we serve our members interests, concentrating on issues that are important to them and to their customers," said HTMA Chairman Mike Notman, "However,as a maturing organisation it is important that we do not focus solely on short-term targets. Over the next three to five years we must develop a suitable mix of complementary activities that allows us to work collaboratively and effectively with other industry bodies".

"The appointment of David as Executive Director will most certainly help the Association to lead developmental change. David has a wealth of experience in the highways sector, commands enormous respect from key people in the industry and his appointment underlines our commitment to creating best practice and industry standards, while influencing government and other stakeholders policies."

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Editors Notes

About David Hutchinson

David worked with consultants and contractors before joining Leeds City Council and then the former West Riding of Yorkshire County Council.  From 1980-1985, he was Chief Engineer for transport policy and planning with West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council, before moving to Dorset as Deputy County Surveyor in 1984. He became County Surveyor in 1985, responsible for all transportation, highways, and waste policy matters and was President of the County Surveyors Society in 1996.

He was a member of SACTRA (Standing Advisory Committee for Trunk Road Assessment) 1991-1996 for the production of the report "Trunk Roads and the generation of Traffic" and an external advisor to the Research Committees of the National Roads Programme Directorate and the Urban and Local Transport Directorate of DETR.

After leaving Dorset in 1998, David set up an independent management consultancy for a number of public and private sector clients. In that role, he advised Mouchel on the expansion of their local government out-sourcing. He has specialised in strategic policy and contractual issues for a wide range of public sector services, with a particular emphasis on the delivery of best value services. In 1999, the Government Office for London commissioned him to establish the Street Management Unit of TfL.

David was president of the IHT in 2005/06 and is currently a consultant to Mouchel.

About HTMA

The HTMA was formed in April 2005 to promote the positive contribution that the highways management and maintenance industry makes to the nation and lobby effectively on behalf of the industry. The ultimate goal of the HTMA is to enable member companies to work together to create a better future for the UKs highways management and maintenance industry.

The HTMA members are: Amey, Atkins, Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Services, BAM Nuttall, BEAR, Carillion, Colas, Enterprise, Fitzpatrick, Halcrow, Hyder, Jacobs, May Gurney, Morrison, Mott MacDonald, Mouchel, Ringway, Scott Wilson, Skanska McNicholas and WSP.

Further information about the HTMA can be found at www.htma.co.uk and details of the HTMA Conference can be found at www.htmaconference.co.uk.

Issued on behalf of the HTMA Press Office by Steven Proud. For enquiries from the media, journalists and researchers only, the HTMA Press Office can be contacted on +44 (0) 1782 443080, +44 (0) 7917 638236 or e-mail: htmapressoffice@theprfirm.co.uk