When Mike Huffman gets a call at 4 a.m., he knows it’s time to get to work. That proved to be true in September of 2018 when a dynamic messaging board above I-70 was down and blocking traffic—it had been struck by a dump truck that failed to lower its bed before driving. Huffman immediately got to work, calling and coordinating crews that were on the scene by 6 a.m. and setting up the cranes they needed to remove the debris. By a little after 10 a.m., traffic was moving like normal again.
That specific incident was one of his most memorable as a Traffic Operations Manager, but for Huffman, it’s the variety of calls and the ability to adapt to new challenges that have kept him with the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) for 25 years. “It’s the satisfaction of doing a job and doing it well,” he said. Whether he’s helping to clear a damaged sign from the road, fixing a traffic signal cabinet, addressing storm damage, or even trying to paint 465 quickly enough that people don’t drive over the wet paint, he’s always ready to solve a problem. Huffman always sets his sights on “getting the job done well.”
And in addition to the challenges he tackles and his inclination to fix things, he said it’s the people that make INDOT a great place to work. He recalls when his coworkers were delivering medical supplies to those in need during the pandemic, saying “We’ve got some amazing people here. They care about each other; they care about the community.” His coworkers feel the same about him, with one saying “Mike is always in good spirits and is quick to help anyone who needs it.”
As he prepares to retire from INDOT, he has some advice to those who are interested in his line of work. “If you’re looking for a career—this is a good place to build a career…there are always opportunities to advance.”
We’re glad that employees like Mike Huffman are a part of our team and wish him well in his retirement!
Photo captions: (top right) Mike Huffman, (left) The dynamic messaging board that was struck on I-70 in 2018, (bottom right) Huffman in his first week as a signal technician when flooding in Greenfield caused a building to collapse, damaging a traffic signal cabinet.