Regional Director Named to Caltrans’ No. 2 Post

The regional Caltrans director who accelerated design work at a crowded Valley interchange after a request from Gov. Gray Davis, was appointed chief deputy director of the state agency Thursday by the governor.

The promotion of Tony V. Harris to the No. 2 post at the California Department of Transportation is good news for the crowded junction of the San Diego and Ventura freeways, said David Fleming, a prominent San Fernando Valley attorney who sits on the California Transportation Commission.

“My reaction is one of elation,” Fleming said. “Tony not only knows the transportation problems of all of Los Angeles, he’s very familiar with the Valley.”

Harris, 39, has directed the state transportation system for Los Angeles and Ventura counties since 1997. He has also served as a program manager, design engineer and office chief for Caltrans.

Margie Tiritilli a Caltrans spokeswoman, said Harris was in Sacramento and could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Assemblyman Wally Knox (D-Los Angeles), who has badgered transit officials for months to speed improvements at the freeway interchange, called Harris “one of the bright lights in the bureaucratic structure.”

“He has been a tremendous asset in getting the 405 / 101 project up and running,” Knox said. “To have him promoted is very, very good.”

After Gov. Davis urged quicker work statewide on road projects, Harris announced in January that Caltrans would accelerate a $13.1-million upgrade for the freeway exchange by more than a year. The agency began working on an environmental review and a design plan simultaneously to save time.

The project, which will add two partial lanes to the interchange, is now slated for completion by late 2002.

With more than 16 years of highway engineering and management experience, Harris is expected to be an important addition to the transportation agency’s top echelon. Jose Medina, a former San Francisco county supervisor named by the governor to head Caltrans, brought scant direct transportation experience to the job.

Harris, who earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from North Carolina State University, will receive a $101,211 salary in his new position.