Maryland Gov. Moore nominates Paul Wiedefeld to lead Maryland Department of Transportation

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has nominated Paul Wiedefeld to be the state’s secretary of transportation.

Gov. Moore noted Wiedefeld is a transportation pro who understands the challenges of the state’s transportation systems.

“Over his years as a leader in the transportation sector, Paul has proven to be a thoughtful and decisive leader who knows how to make tough choices, and necessary choices in order to advance progress,” Gov. Moore said. “He also understands the importance of public transit and the role it plays in the lives of all our citizens. Paul is the transportation leader we need in this moment.”

Gov. Moore referenced the cancelled Red Line project, the delayed Purple Line project and recent service disruptions experienced by MARC trains as reason for selecting Wiedefeld as a change agent that will help the state’s transportation systems improve.

Wiedefeld has a 40-year transportation career that includes serving as the administrator of the Maryland Transit Administration and two separate stints as executive director and CEO of the Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA). While with the MAA between 2002-2005, Wiedefeld managed Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport’s (BWI) largest expansion in history, which included a terminal for Southwest airlines, an 8,400-space parking garage and rental car facility. During Weidefeld’s second tenure, BWI became the leading airport in the capital region, providing service to 22 million passengers annually.

Wiedefeld was named general manager and CEO of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit (WMATA) in 2015. He is credited with improving rail safety and reliability through the authority’s SafeTrack initiative, securing dedicated funding, developing one of the transit industry’s largest ($2 billion annual) capital programs to restore the system to a state of good repair and steering the agency through the pandemic in partnership with labor leaders.

He had notified the WMATA Board of Directors of his intention to step down in June 2022 but left the agency in May 2022 following a series of incidents that saw the authority’s entire fleet of 7000-series railcars pulled from service and news that nearly half of the Metrorail operators had lapsed recertifications. He called the decision to step away from the authority ahead of schedule as serving in the “best interest of the agency and its workforce,” with whom he was “deeply proud to lead.” Following WMATA, he joined HDR as its northeast transportation director.

“I look forward to working with the team to achieve [Gov Moore’s] vision for Maryland and understand the critical role the department of transportation plays in supporting that vision - to be a department of transportation that works in partnership and transparency with the communities we are here to serve. A department that serves to meet [Gov Moore’s] goals of social equity, environmental protection and sustainable communities and a department that enhances the economic opportunities for all citizens of Maryland,” Wiedefeld said at a press conference.

Gov. Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller’s vision for the state’s transportation system puts a focus on equitable transportation planning, taking a regional approach to mobility, improving electric vehicle infrastructure and better managing congestion through usable mass transit, expanded and enhanced commuter rail and the development of high-speed rail capacity on the Northeast Corridor. 

“We know that when we think about the future for the things that we are looking to get done, or the type of speed that we want to move on, with the lens that we want to evaluate every single project that we have, we believe firmly and deeply that Paul is the person who will lead us there,” Gov. Moore said.