The Board of Directors of the Eno Center for Transportation is pleased to announce the appointment of Patrick McKenna as President and Chief Executive Officer.  

McKenna, who is succeeding Robert Puentes, will assume his new role on October 7, 2024. McKenna currently serves as the Director of the State of Missouri Department of Transportation. During his nine-year tenure with MoDOT, he has led a complex enterprise of 5,100 employees to transform decades of deferred maintenance for the nation’s 7th largest transportation network.  

Prior to serving as MoDOT director, McKenna served as the Deputy Commissioner for the NHDOT and Chief Financial Officer at the United States Senate, Office of the Secretary. 

McKenna’s passion for servant leadership inspired him to serve in volunteer roles at AASHTO, culminating in the honor of being selected as President. He currently serves as the National Safety Committee chair.  McKenna has also served on the executive committee of TRB and currently is the chair of the NCHRP 20-24 committee, along with the national strategic vision project.  

“We are thrilled to welcome Patrick McKenna to the Eno Center for Transportation” said James H. Burnley, Chairman of the Eno Board of Directors and Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation. “He is an exceptional leader with a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities the transportation industry faces today. We are confident that his vision and expertise will drive the Eno Center to new heights.” 

Diane Woodend Jones, Vice Chair of the Eno Board and Chair of the Executive Search Committee, enthusiastically looks forward to the next chapter of leadership at the Eno Center of Transportation. “Patrick McKenna has a proven record of innovation and strategic thinking and exemplifies Eno’s core values of independence, collaboration, relevance, excellence and entrepreneurialism. His leadership and experience will be invaluable for building on Eno’s rich legacy toward a bright future. We are thrilled to have him on board.”  

In accepting the role, Patrick McKenna expressed excitement about joining Eno and advancing its mission. “I am honored to lead the Eno Center for Transportation at this pivotal time,” he said, “I look forward to collaborating with Eno’s talented team and diverse stakeholders to further our vision for a transportation system that fosters economic vitality, advances social equity, improves safety, and quality of life for all.” 

The Eno Center for Transportation is a non-profit charitable foundation, founded in 1921 by William Phelps Eno, who pioneered the field of traffic management in the United States and Europe. Eno provides timely research and an independent voice on policy issues and publishes rigorous and objective analyses, including its flagship publication, Eno Transportation Weekly (ETW). Through its professional development programs, Eno cultivates creative and visionary leadership by giving public and private transportation leaders the tools and training they need to succeed together. Since its inception, Eno has instructed over 5,000 transportation professionals.  

Under Patrick McKenna’s leadership, the Eno Center for Transportation will continue to focus on its core mission to shape public debate on critical multimodal transportation issues and to build a network of innovative transportation professionals.  

For more information about Eno, please visit https://enotrans.org