Alice Janiszeski, permits technician in Marshall, provided information to fair-goers at Mn/DOT's State Fair exhibit last year.

If the lure of corn dogs and mini-donuts aren’t enough to draw you to the Minnesota State Fair, here’s a low-calorie reason to attend this year: to work at Mn/DOT’s large outdoor exhibit.

Mn/DOT annually hosts an exhibit at the fair to educate Minnesota citizens—young and old—about transportation, according to Sue Stein, Mn/DOT’s State Fair coordinator. Under the theme, “Moving Minnesota,” this year’s exhibit will showcase a variety of Mn/DOT products and services.

Each district office will be responsible for staffing the exhibit for one day. Metro Division and Central Office employees will staff the exhibit on weekends and Labor Day. Employees are asked to work a four-hour shift and will receive an admission ticket and a t-shirt to wear during their shift.

Employees in district offices should contact their public affairs coordinator for more information. Metro Division and Central Office employees should contact Pam Owens, 651/296-3000.

It’s important that employees get their supervisor’s approval before expressing interest in working, Stein said. 

The State Fair runs from Aug. 23 through Labor Day.

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Two rest areas on I-35 that use vacuum toilets, waterless urinals and low-volume sinks save thousands of gallons of water each day, reducing the size of drain fields needed to dispose of wastewater in environmentally sensitive areas. The rest areas are located in Northeastern Minnesota.

The Kettle River Rest Area serves travelers on northbound I-35 near Banning State Park and the wild and scenic Kettle River. The General Andrews Rest Area serves southbound I-35 travelers near Sturgeon Lake. The technology used saves about of 2,500 gallons of water on an average day and about 6,500 gallons daily during peak use periods at each facility, notes Wayne Sanford, Office of Maintenance.

The toilets use less than a half-gallon of water per flush, compared with 1.5 gallons for a standard toilet. Chemicals which treat wastes allow them to pass through the urinals without using water. Pushbutton sinks dispense water for only six to seven seconds at low volume to limit consumption. And both rest areas operate with energy-saving heating and lighting systems.

“Innovations that we’ve placed in the rest areas conserve water, cut costs needed to acquire land for drainage and protect the state’s environment,” Sanford said. 

By Craig Wilkins

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Sue Lodahl, formerly state lighting engineer with Traffic Engineering, was named operations support engineer with the Maintenance Operations and Research Section. She succeeds Steve Lund who was named maintenance engineer with the Metro Division.

Kraig Pettee was appointed as the section’s coordinator for the Circuit Training and Assistance Program. Pettee, formerly a senior transportation generalist at Metro, succeeds Tom Broadbent who resigned.

In her new position Lodahl will manage the section whose functions include CTAP, the Road Weather Information System, the Salt Solutions program and other research application programs.

Lodahl’s previous experience also includes work traffic engineering at Oakdale. She holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Minnesota.

At Metro, Pettee most recently served on the masonry crew that is responsible for tasks such as repairing storm sewers and catch basins as well as concrete blow-ups caused by heat. He has been a Mn/DOT employee since 1986.

In his new role, Pettee will oversee CTAP, which provides training, technical expertise and information on maintenance research efforts to employees and supervisors at state, county, city and township highway departments.

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Forty transit system drivers are expected to participate on July 28 in this year's statewide bus roadeo in Dululth.

Bus drivers from Minnesota’s small and large transit systems will test their skills on a driving course that will measure their ability to maneuver their vehicles at the 2001 version of the state Transit Roadeo in Duluth on Saturday, July 28.

Mn/DOT sponsors the annual event, which provides an opportunity for drivers to hone their driving skills and to receive training that will enable them to provide better service to their customers.

This year, more than 40 transit system drivers will compete in the event. Drivers will encounter simulations of the conditions they face daily including sharp turns, narrow lanes and backing into small spaces.

For more information, contact Barb Quade, 651/296-1610 or visit the Office of Transit Web page.

By Craig Wilkins

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You can find the final results of the department’s six-week Shape-Up Challenge in today's issue of Employeeline.

Want to know who in Mn/DOT has gotten married or become a new parent? This and other personal and personnel-related information is available online by clicking on “Employee Info” on the left hand navigation bar of Mn/DOT Newsline.

In addition, you can find news about events and other activities in Employeeline. Today’s issue, for example, provides the final results of the department’s six-week Shape-Up Challenge. Which district or area, on average, earned the most points? Check out today’s Employeeline to find out.

Readers outside of Mn/DOT will not be able to access Employeeline because it is located on Mn/DOT’s internal Web site. However, plans are being made to have this information available for retirees through another format.

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Question:   “My question concerns “Bill Yoerg Recognition Day.”  Who is (was) Bill Yoerg?”

Answer: Bill Yoerg, who died in September 1990, had worked for Mn/DOT since 1959. He began as a graduate engineer and held several engineering positions before becoming District Engineer for District 3-Brainerd in 1984. In 1987, he became Assistant Division Director of Highways. He accepted the post of Deputy Division Director of Operations for Mn/DOT in June 1990.

Shortly before he died, Yoerg coordinated traffic and transportation logistics for the July 1990 Minnesota visit of then-Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. However, within Mn/DOT, Yoerg left an even bigger impact by introducing and promoting quality improvement concepts. He strongly pushed projects that applied quality concepts to:

§         improve work processes

§         save money 

§         take less time

Since 1996, Mn/DOT has held a semi-annual “Bill Yoerg Quality Recognition Day” in Yoerg’s honor. The next recognition day will take place Sept. 20 at the Earle Brown Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center, according to Phyllis Dahl, employee development specialist, Office of Human Resources.

The day-long event includes keynote speakers who are highly regarded in the quality movement. During the day, however, the most moving moments occur when the spotlight shines (quite literally) on teams of Mn/DOT employees receiving quality awards.

Why did Mn/DOT name the quality recognition day after Yoerg?

“We named it after Bill Yoerg because he influenced Mn/DOT to promote the principles of W. Edwards Deming and Deming’s ‘Fourteen Quality Points,’ as well as winning a quality award himself,” said Bob Vockrodt, Light Rail Office planner and Quality Recognition Day committee member.

“He died in his mid-50s and left four children and a wife, Ann Yoerg, who always comes to these events,” Vockrodt added. “Naming the recognition day after him gives him a great honor. He’s more than deserving.”

After Yoerg’s death, Mn/DOT’s monthly newsletter published this tribute:

“He was filled with enthusiasm and youthful excitement about new ways to make our department a better place to work…he was involved in a mission, and his spark changed us all. We at Mn/DOT will miss our friend, but we are better people for having known him.”

Questions about Quality Recognition Day itself may be directed to Phyllis Dahl, 651/296-4001.

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