CHICAGO — The Illinois Tollway and Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) announced that Tollway Executive Director Kristi Lafleur and Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann Schneider have been selected as “Women of the Year” by the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) Greater Chicago Chapter. The award recognizes Lafleur and Schneider for their leadership and outstanding contributions to the Chicago-area transportation industry. It also takes into account their contributions to the advancement of women and minorities through programs or opportunities in transportation.

Lafleur and Schneider will be presented with their awards this spring and, as recipients of the WTS Greater Chicago Women of the Year award, they are automatically nominated for the WTS International award.

“It’s an honor to share the Women of the Year title with my friend and colleague Ann Schneider,” said Lafleur. “This award validates all the hard work of the women and men of both the Tollway and IDOT, as we all work together for the benefit of motorists and local communities throughout Illinois.”

Illinois’ network of 138,000 miles of state and local roads makes it the nation’s third-largest state highway system. The state highway system of 17,000 miles of roads includes the 286-mile Illinois Tollway system in Northern Illinois in its total of 2,050 miles of interstate roads.

“We work together to provide a greener, more efficient transportation network in Illinois — the transportation hub of the nation. Being recognized by WTS along with my counterpart Kristi Lafleur makes this award even more special,” said Schneider. "We are fortunate to both have the support of Governor Pat Quinn, and work with great teams of professionals who share our vision to make Illinois the recognized leader in transportation.”

The Illinois Tollway and IDOT collaborate on a wide range of transportation issues to help relieve congestion, improve mobility and provide time and cost savings for motorists. The agencies also work together closely on initiatives that enhance quality of life, promote economic development and demonstrate respect for our environment.

Lafleur was appointed executive director of the Illinois Tollway in April 2010 by the Tollway Board of Directors following a nationwide search. She is the first woman to serve in this role since the agency was created in 1953. Lafleur launched her new administration by spearheading efforts to secure a $12 billion, 15-year capital program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future, to accommodate needs of the region’s traveling public into the 21st century. The program establishes guidelines for infrastructure investments for 2012-2026, including priority projects to improve regional mobility and integration of transit opportunities for the first time in agency history.

Lafleur co-chaired Governor Quinn’s Elgin O’Hare West Bypass Advisory Council, a project of national significance, to develop the vision for the Elgin O’Hare West Bypass as a “Corridor of the Future.” In September 2011, Lafleur was named to the board of directors of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association, the worldwide association for the owners and operators of toll facilities and the businesses that serve tolling. She also serves on the executive board of the E-ZPass Group, an association of 24 toll agencies in 14 states that works to advance interoperability of toll collection systems throughout North America.

Prior to the Tollway, Lafleur served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Economic Development and Recovery for Governor Quinn, organizing American Recovery and Reinvestment Act programs investing more than $12 billion in federal funds in Illinois. Lafleur also served as the governor’s liaison and chair of the Midwest High Speed Rail Steering Committee, a group appointed by eight Midwest governors and the mayor of Chicago.

In November 2011, Schneider became the first female secretary of transportation with unanimous confirmation by the Illinois Senate. As secretary, Schneider is responsible for coordination with federal, state and local elected officials, agency directors, industry associations and adjacent state DOTs and she serves as CEO for IDOT.

Prior to her appointment as secretary, Schneider was the chief operations officer and chief fiscal officer for IDOT. In this position, she was responsible for the most aggressive minority recruitment effort ever undertaken by IDOT. She identified universities with large minority civil engineering student enrollments. She also developed IDOT recruitment teams and sent them to hire engineers from targeted universities.

Under Schneider’s aggressive leadership, IDOT has made significant improvement toward obtaining parity in all underutilized categories. In an effort to interest minority students to study engineering, she developed the first-ever IDOT Transportation Career Day for middle and high school students. In addition, she created the IDOT university engineering scholarship program for minority students that are willing to commit to a career at IDOT.