One of the leading figures in the ITS sector, Darren Capes, has been appointed as head of road infrastructure technology at the Department for Transport (DfT).
Mr Capes has spent seven years as DfT’s intelligent transport systems policy lead, initially joining the department on secondment from his role as transport systems manager for the City of York, a position he held for 17 years.
He also played a lead role in establishing and running the influential Transport Technology Forum, which has overseen the allocation of scores of millions for innovative local authority ITS schemes.
His appointment comes after a quartet of DfT officials’ retirements.
Head of traffic and technology, Anthony Ferguson, head of smarter traffic management, Graham Hanson, connected roads policy lead, Gary Crockford, and technical specialist Suku Phull have all recently announced the end of their careers.
Mr Capes said: 'This will be very much a continuation of the work I have been leading at DfT but with a stronger focus on maximising the use of technology on the road network now, and preparing it for the challenges of the future.
'Technology has the ability to make our roads safer, more sustainable and more efficient, as evidenced at the recent Transport Technology Forum, and I look forward to helping the UK’s excellent road infrastructure technology sector to continue to realise its enormous potential.'
He started his career in transport as an engineering technician with Humberside County Council in 1986 before joining North Lincolnshire Council in 1996 to take up a position as a transportation engineer. He joined the City of York Council in 2001 where he remained until his move to DfT in 2018.
