The past four decades have witnessed the emergence of multiple advanced technologies that have reshaped surface transportation infrastructure, from computer-aided design and dynamic message signs to autonomous vehicles and drones.
In this period, Randy Iwasaki has been instrumental in paving the way for these tools to move from the realm of innovation to the real safety and mobility needs of California and beyond. At every stop in his career, from Caltrans engineer to agency director, from leading the Contra Costa Transportation Authority to his current role as a transportation consultant to public and private sector organizations, Iwasaki has continually looked for ways to incorporate new ideas into strategies to solve the long-standing challenges of moving people and goods safely and efficiently.
“His career reflects the definition of a legacy leader,” wrote Abbigail Brown, president of CPM Logistics, which nominated Iwasaki for ENR West’s Legacy Award for Northern California. The vision he has deployed throughout his career “not only transforms systems, but inspires the next generation of engineers, public servants and industry pioneers,” he added.
Providing facilities to test autonomous vehicles and creating regulations for their use has been a priority for Iwasaki.
Photo courtesy of Randy Iwasaki
Iwasaki, who grew up in the Central Valley farming community of Reedley, credits Gordon Marts, an early Caltrans District 6 supervisor and mentor, with fueling his journey to becoming a technology expert. He recalls how Marts once assigned him to go to the agency’s headquarters in Sacramento and request CADD machines to speed the transition from ink and vellum plans to digital design.
When Iwasaki suggested that Marts “was better suited to this task as assistant district director for project implementation, he pulled out our organizational chart and reminded me that I was the CADD coordinator,” Iwasaki says. “He asked again how many machines he thought we would need. I gave him a number. He said OK, and I went to Sacramento to order these workstations. So we became the first Caltrans district to do all-digital design.”
Despite the unexpected redefinition of his role at the time, the experience was one of many lifelong lessons that would gradually refine Iwasaki’s appreciation of the importance of mentorship and networking.
“It is important to remember that as planners and engineers, we are products of our environment,” he once wrote in an article for an ASCE publication. “When that environment is good, when you have supportive supervisors who look after you, help you expand, expand what you think you’re capable of doing, you can be more successful.”
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In the case of Marts and other mentors like former Caltrans director James van Lobel Sels, Iwasaki added, “These managers supported me, annoyed me at times, and pushed me to apply for new positions and take on new responsibilities, even when I preferred to stay in a job where I felt comfortable and safe. But because they had taught me well about my opportunities, they had taught me to know my opportunities opportunities”.
Iwasaki and transportation leaders visit the construction site for the fourth hole in the Caldecott Tunnel in Oakland, California.
Photo courtesy of Caltrans
Advancement of accessibility
Those opportunities would come quickly as Iwasaki rose through the leadership ranks at Caltrans, culminating in a nearly yearlong stint as the agency’s director in 2009-10. Along the way, he led the completion of the seismic retrofit program for California’s seven state-owned toll bridges, oversaw the replacement of the East Span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, and implemented drone-based measurement technology for construction verification.
Iwasaki would go on to serve as executive director of the Contra Costa Transportation Authority, coinciding with the arrival of another technological advancement in transportation: autonomous vehicles.
“It’s important to remember that as planners and engineers, we are products of our environment.”
—Randy Iwasaki
With agencies across the country competing to provide manufacturers with suitable locations to test and refine the technology, Iwasaki took advantage of a ready-made street design at Naval Weapons Station Concord. Renamed GoMentum Station, the 2,100-acre facility offered all the built and natural features of an urban driving environment to safely evaluate AV technologies in real-world situations. It also imported the first Level 3 autonomous shuttles to North America and secured federal and state approvals to operate them on public streets in California.
“My vision at the time was to find the best ways to access first and last mile transit for the aging and underserved population,” he says. “We felt that AVs could help in this area.”
Although the advent of what some at the time characterized as an “AV revolution” has progressed more incrementally, Iwasaki remains confident of its eventual rollout. What matters most, he adds, is timing, which is another professional lesson he now shares as a consultant on strategic growth, innovation and technology adoption for leading industries, entrepreneurs and public agencies.
“I’ve never met a company that didn’t believe their product was the best on the market,” he says. “They don’t always consider whether their industry or their target markets are ready for it.”
As an example, he notes how Uber initially encountered significant resistance to its concept. After sharpening its focus, the company expanded both its services and scope to become a transportation accessory.
And just as young engineers need to be on the lookout for career growth opportunities, agencies need to keep an open mind about technology. A company he works with has developed a platform that unifies thousands of different types of traffic cameras, allowing transit agencies to analyze and respond in real time to unexpected situations.
“In addition to having a traffic monitoring asset, you have a system by which you can come up with a more sophisticated traffic management strategy,” says Iwasaki.
Throughout his career, Iwasaki has championed some of California’s most ambitious transportation infrastructure efforts.
Photo courtesy of Randy Iwasaki
An industry influencer
Throughout his career, Iwasaki has played an active role in a number of transportation-related organizations and initiatives that promote information sharing. Last year, he was elected to a two-year term as president of the International Road Foundation Global, an organization dedicated to providing a global marketplace for transportation best practices and industry solutions.
“IRF Global focuses not only on sharing ideas between developed countries,” he says, “but also on bringing technologies and approaches to countries where transportation systems may not be fully developed and where these ideas can make a difference in the lives of millions.”
Iwasaki’s involvement with IRF Global also provides another outlet for her other passions: guiding and advocating for workforce diversity, safety and forward-looking leadership, demonstrated by honors she has received, such as the WTS Ray LaHood Award for Advancing Women in Transportation. Perhaps the future leader Iwasaki is most proud of is his daughter Lauren, who was recently named a corporate partner in the Los Angeles office of a leading global law firm.
Somehow, amidst his busy schedule, the incredibly energetic Iwasaki still finds time to embark on far-flung travel adventures with his wife, Rebecca.
Iwasaki, Amazon’s state and local transportation leader, tests the company’s delivery processes.
“We’ve had the opportunity to set foot on seven continents, and I’ve been paid to speak on six of them,” he says, adding with a laugh. “Still, I’m not sure there will be any intervention in Antarctica.”
Asked how current trends will evolve into the next decade’s transportation environment, Iwasaki believes that amid a more technologically rich environment, including more prevalence of AVs and advances in vertiports and drone delivery, the fundamentals of building and maintaining roads and bridges will remain paramount.
“We will have better information about how to make investments in asset management and use predictive analytics to make roads safer,” he says. “I also hope we make big strides in construction safety. We need to focus on the trades and make sure our work zones are safe, materials are set up right, and crews can go in and do the job right the first time.”
