RIDOT Touts Savings by Insourcing Road Striping Work

Bucking the notion that the private sector does work for the government cheaper than the government, the state Department of Transportation on Monday announced that it will save the state more than $20 million over the next 10 years by internally shifting resources and handling road striping work in-house.

“The striping crews and equipment will enable the Department to transition away from costly contracts for this service,” a RIDOT news release stated.

The agency created a pavement marking team using “existing unfilled administrative positions and transferring them to the Department’s Highway and Bridge Maintenance Division.”

A total of 40 positions will be transferred to maintenance, and the first 10 of 20 staff positions dedicated to pavement marking applications have been advertised, according to the DOT.

“This is one in a large number of critical changes in the way RIDOT does business in order to allow us to provide a better service at a lower cost,” RIDOT Director Peter Alviti Jr. said. “It will have the added benefit of reducing our administrative staff by the 40 positions (eliminating positions with titles such as “Photographer”). We need more people filling potholes than taking pictures of them.”

RIDOT performed a cost-benefit analysis comparing the current cost of out-sourced contracting for this work versus establishing an in-house pavement marking team. The analysis included consultation with other state DOTs, notably New Hampshire DOT, and a review of current contract costs and best practices in these states.

RIDOT divides Rhode Island into five maintenance regions - North, South, Central, East Bay and Limited Access Highways - and has a two-year pavement marking contract for each. The total cost of pavement marking contracts averages $6.8 million per year. The cost per year for equivalent in-house striping services would be approximately $4.8 million per year. When factoring in additional savings for winter operations of $2.5 million, the total savings to taxpayers by taking this action amounts to $22.1 million over 10 years.

The announcement comes as the agency is proposing to create three high-paying administrative jobs: a chief of staff, a communications director and a policy director, all earning at or above the $100,000 range.

The DOT is in the midst of a shakeup that began when Governor Gina Raimondo announced an overhaul last year and appointed Peter Alviti as its new director.

As of last week, three high-ranking DOT administrators and engineers remained on paid leave, earning their $100,000-plus salaries. The state has not explained why they remain on leave since July.