The Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) now has a new confirmed President for 2023/24. That person is Karen McShane, who – at her Presidential Inauguration event at the CIHT’s London offices – said it was crucial to put into motion “climate action to drive attitudinal change on how and why we travel”.
CIHT set to take on “key challenge to society”
A chartered engineer with more than 35 years’ experience – including in local government as well as consultancy – the new CIHT President has already set out her stall on climate.
Sure enough, the CIHT’s coming year under McShane will see the charity and membership body undertake a range of activities and initiatives, focusing on the central theme of the decarbonisation of the highways, transport, and infrastructure sector.
Describing climate change as “a key challenge to society”, McShane went on to reference the Climate Change (Targeted Greenhouse Gases) Order 2023, which she said was “one of the latest pieces of legislation taking climate action to the next level.
“These regulations firmly impact upon how we all do our business and how we need to consider future development.”
However, the CIHT President had more to say on the subject that will be of interest to great numbers of transport consultants.
She said that “to provide a planet that is fit for our future generations, we must embrace as monumental a change as when the Victorians introduced both our railway networks and our water infrastructure.
“The latter has had as big on impact on health as the medical industry, and we do not want transport to be remembered in the future as a negative contributor to the health of our planet.”
In its news update highlighting McShane’s words, the CIHT also laid out its various other areas of focus for the year ahead. One such area of focus was a commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion, with an update set to be made to the organisation’s EDI Toolkit and Charter.
The charity also plans enhanced offerings for education and continuing professional development (CPD), including new courses and content on CIHT Learn. And the Institution added that it would be “putting people at the centre of all we do”, including by presenting new opportunities and services for CIHT volunteers and the body’s broader membership.
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