Stephen Todd Rumbaugh was appointed Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT) and Commissioner of the West Virginia Division of Highways (WVDOH) in early 2025.
Rumbaugh, who was born, raised, and educated in West Virginia, is well-acquainted with the state. He began working at WVDOH while pursuing his undergraduate degree in civil engineering at the West Virginia Institute of Technology.
The Professional Engineer worked for WVDOH for over 31 years and served in multiple capacities. His job duties have included: Inspector, Designer, Project Engineer, Area Supervisor, Staff Engineer, Regional Construction Engineer, Director of Contract Administration, Deputy State Highway Engineer - Development and Construction, and Chief Engineer of Construction.
Over the years at WVDOH, Rumbaugh learned a great deal. Some of the notable teachings are:
- There is a reason that things are done the way they are. Be sure to understand why before acting.
- A leader can never praise their staff enough.
- One does not have to know the answer to start. Eighty percent is close enough to implement.
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Rumbaugh also developed a positive reputation. Randy Smith, State Senate President, discussed the Secretary's reputation when Rumbaugh first met with West Virginia's legislative leaders after being appointed.
Smith noted that personnel from the four highway districts in his district praised Rumbaugh's integrity, honesty, and work ethic. Contractors also praised Rumbaugh, describing him as tough but honest and fair.
As Rumbaugh takes on the new role, he has one top priority that drives him.
"Safety is always the No. 1 priority and should be everyone's," Rumbaugh said. "My job is to create a team that will work together to provide the public with a safe and efficient transportation system that will continue long after I am gone."
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He and his team have begun a reorganization of WVDOT.
"When I first assumed the Secretary position,” Rumbaugh said, “the DOT was organized based on the budget that included the previous administration's Roads to Prosperity [RTP] program, which was three times as large as the current budget.”
“It took much more management to oversee a larger program,” he added. “Therefore, we needed to right-size the management structure to the current budget. This process should help us become more efficient, leading to better use of resources, helping to provide a safer and more efficient transportation system."
Funding for the Roads to Prosperity program was appropriated in 2017 and is now nearly depleted, resulting in reduced funding availability for the department going forward.
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The Secretary pointed to funding as WVDOT's most significant challenge and concern.
"With the end of the RTP program, our funding levels are returning to 2018 levels without increases for inflation over that period," Rumbaugh said. "Construction and material costs have risen tremendously over that period, creating a huge deficit in available funds."
Construction material costs jumped dramatically during the pandemic. Although they have fluctuated since, they remain elevated. Experts suggest this is the new normal, which increases the funding challenges WVDOT faces. Rumbaugh is determined to find ways to increase funding.
"We are partnering with counties, municipalities, and developers to provide funds for projects in everyone's interest,” he said. “By working together, we can achieve a lot more."
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Rumbaugh detailed other priorities when he initially met with West Virginia's legislative leaders. These include:
- Continuing WVDOH’s maintenance program, which he said will be a top priority
- Replacing highway drainage systems, which will be near the top of the priority list
- Replacing the state’s bridges, which rank low compared to other states
Meeting these goals while prioritizing safety on a limited budget is a significant challenge.
"Many studies have been done, and all result in stating how underfunded the DOT is," Rumbaugh said.
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Despite the funding challenges, a significant amount of work is already underway on West Virginia's roads and bridges. There are several major corridors around the state that WVDOT is continuing to work on, including Corridor H, the Coalfields Expressway, and King Coal Highway. All three massive projects have been in progress for years.
"While funding has decreased and requires several of these corridors to slow down, we still have active projects on all of them and more are being planned," Rumbaugh said.
Corridor H is part of the Appalachian Development Highway, a four-lane divided highway that runs across the state and extends into northwestern Virginia. The 150-plus-mile highway traverses mountainous terrain. All but two sections of the highway are open or under construction, with the section between Parsons and Davis expected to begin construction in 2027. The final piece, from Wardensville to the Virginia state line, is expected to start construction in 2026.
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Upon completion, the Coalfields Expressway will provide a multi-lane expressway, with partial control of access. The project will connect I-64/I-77 (the West Virginia Turnpike) at Beckley, West Virginia, and U.S. 23 at Slate, Virginia. In West Virginia, the Coalfields Expressway will be approximately 65 miles long, and in Virginia, the length of the corridor will be about 50 miles.
The 95-mile, four-lane King Coal Highway project was divided into 11 usable and operationally independent sections. Only one section has been completed so far, a section between John Nash Boulevard and Airport Road in Bluefield, West Virginia. A section from Airport Road to Littlesburg is under contract but awaiting an environmental permit. WVDOT is looking for funding for a section from Littlesburg to Montcalm.
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The agency’s bridge program is also visible throughout the state, necessitating significant traffic control as they work to rehabilitate or replace structures across the region. Some of the major bridge projects undertaken by WVDOT include:
- An over $250 million project to replace or rehabilitate 26 sets of bridges along the Interstate 70 corridor in Wheeling, West Virginia.
- An over $225 million project to replace the four-lane Donald M. Legg Memorial Bridge on Interstate 64 with two new four-lane spans, while widening I-64 to six lanes in the Nitro area. The project eliminated a major bottleneck on one of the most heavily traveled sections of highway in the state.
Rumbaugh and WVDOT will need the West Virginia contracting community to help achieve his goals. The Secretary appreciates the community and values their role in maintaining and improving the state's infrastructure.
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"I consider the contracting community to be an extension of our workforce and, as such, I expect the same or better quality of work from them than our own folks provide," Rumbaugh said. "It is a long-standing partnership that, if embraced, can be beneficial for both sides."
Being appointed Secretary of WVDOT and Commissioner of WVDOH is a significant responsibility. Rumbaugh's extensive career at WVDOH has prepared him for the role. He has dug in and is finding ways to address the challenges, putting the departments on a solid footing for the future.
When his tenure comes to an end, Rumbaugh said he and the driving public will know he was successful if "you will not know I left. Others will be able to continue the work and progress with no noticeable difference."
West Virginia covers over 24,000 square miles. The rural state has a population of approximately 1.7 million. Charleston, the capital of West Virginia, has approximately 50,000 residents, with a significant portion of the population residing in small towns and rural areas. The lack of density and rugged terrain makes ease of travel around the state especially important.
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The state has the sixth-largest DOT in the country, with over 7,000 bridges and approximately 39,000 miles of roadway. The Secretary and his team are responsible for 94 percent of the roads in West Virginia. The other 6 percent are private roadways or maintained by municipalities.
"We have a very large system with a very small population base, leading to a very challenging transportation system to maintain," Rumbaugh said.
Rumbaugh, a native of West Virginia, explained the secret to maintaining the system.
“Our greatest strength is the people of West Virginia and our employees,” he said. “Our workers consistently go above and beyond, regardless of the problem or task. To me, they are the best anywhere. The people of West Virginia entrust the DOT to safely maintain their transportation system and rely on the DOT to improve their lives.”
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Photos courtesy of WVDOT
