Momentum Issue #152 – Women’s Equality Day 2024 – A Look at the Future of Diverse Transportation Leaders

In 1973, the New York Representative Bella Abzug achieved her goal of assigning August 26 as Women’s Equality Day, backed with the approval of Congress. This day was set to commemorate the 1920 certification of the 19^th Amendment to the Constitution, granting women the right to vote, and it lives on to call attention to the continued multifaceted efforts towards women’s equality.  

Since 1920, women’s opportunities for success in the United States have grown in leaps and bounds. Just look to the recent 2024 Paris Olympics: the U.S. women brought home so many medals that if they were measured as their own country, they’d rank third in overall medal count.  

But athleticism is not the only place in which our nation’s women are excelling, as statistics now show that they are beginning to greatly outpace men in the number of those with college degrees – about a 6 percentage point difference. Despite achieving many accolades, a gap remains between the qualifications of this aptly skilled generation of women and their place in the labor market. A strikingly lower percentage of women than men are in the workforce, especially in high-level roles. 

The transportation industry shows a distinct point of strain for women’s equality and representation. Research shows a staggeringly low 15% of transportation workers are women.  Adding to the low numbers of female workers, the transportation sector also suffers from the concept of the “broken rung” – a lack of opportunities for women to progress upward into higher level positions. Many women are subject to vertical occupational segregation – a freezing into lower-paying role groups. This deters many women from entering the field or causes them to switch industries once they hit a wall in their transportation career. Noting this hurdle, we now must look to seize the opportunity to increase diversity by finding solutions to attract and promote women throughout their careers.  

Increasing the presence of women within the workforce offers monumental benefits to not only our industry, but the economy of the nation at large. Women add a crucial layer of diverse perspectives and skillsets, opening doors and offering innovative solutions. ITS America is among the organizations who have not only been outspoken about the need to increase female representation in transportation but have led by example. ITS America is proud to lead with an executive leadership that looks different than it did in the past, including a female CEO and the executive leadership of our Board of Directors being majority women: Joanna M. Pinkerton as Chair, Seleta Reynolds as Secretary, and Laurel K. Straub as Treasurer.  

These results don’t just happen – they must be driven by intention, commitment and purpose by those who hold power within organizations.  Our own President & CEO, Laura Chace, benefitted from the proactive and intentional support of both men and women who came before her, who understood that leadership comes in many different forms, and that lived experience is just as important as board room experience.  “I benefited from having mentors who saw my potential to lead and nurtured it, giving me the kind of access and exposure I would need to advance in this industry,” she shared. “Now, as I stand at the forefront of determining the future for our industry, I am committed to ensuring that women’s voices are present at every table.”    

Under this leadership, the work of ITSA is centered around promoting the core values of how the application of intelligent transportation technologies improves mobility and access to opportunity for people in communities across the country. Our Advisory Committees and Communities of Practice host a culture of vibrant collaboration, and women stand as co-chairs on almost every committee. Our Equity and Workforce Communities of Practice are focusing on how to address inequalities and identify strategies to increase diversity within transportation, showcasing the importance of women’s voices and advocating for their industry presence. With our work, both with members and beyond, we hope to take on the crucial task of paving the way for the next generation of leaders.  

Dara Wheeler, Caltrans Director of Research, Innovation, and System Information; and co-chair of ITSA’s Workforce Development Community of Practice, didn’t let a male-dominated workforce deter her, but she was still thankful to find female role models later in her career. “[A male-dominated industry] didn’t stop me from having that natural drive to want to move into top roles and climb the ladder in my career journey,” she said. “It wasn’t until halfway through my career that I started to notice women who were powerful and leading in the industry.  At that point, finding a mentor and following those who I admired the most, even to the point I emulated their leadership style, helped me take a few steps forward and really propelled my career.” 

The transportation industry has a valuable opportunity to leverage a dynamic new generation in our workforce, and support those already within the field. Evidence shows that a collaborative effort with the sector and in other industries, such as education, labor, and media could be beneficial in addressing the labor gap. Starting engagement from a young age is beneficial for attracting involvement, especially now that younger generations have a larger amount of women role models to look up to. Promoting the accolades of women and ensuring their voices are heard are beneficial for retention, and purposeful recruitment and training allows for conscious inclusion.  

Wheeler notes the great potential for the next generation’s job opportunities, especially with consideration of technological innovation. “But given the trajectory that artificial intelligence infused careers are moving, looking back might be irrelevant,” she suggests. “According to LinkedIn, 85% of jobs in 2030 haven’t even been invented yet. To me, that’s a massive opportunity for the transportation industry to take advantage of the new technology and promote intelligent transportation systems as some of the most exciting career options out there.” 

At this time, researchers note that comprehensive data is still lacking, and this lack of data impacts women’s consistent advancement in an ever-changing field. Efforts to provide insight continues, while experts and advocates beseech organizations to invest in closing the gender gap and involving women in decision-making processes. The more women can achieve success within our industry and set examples, the more that gender norms will be changed to ring in a new era of diverse and groundbreaking leaders.