The Roadshow: Engineering in Action

What does $105 million in engineering investment look like up close? Yesterday in Jacksonville, Florida, we showed the public exactly that.

The Engineering & Public Works Roadshow made its latest stop at McCoys Creek on March 26, joining Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan, Public Works Director Nina Sickler, and City Council members Jimmy Peluso and Tyrona Clark-Murray for the ribbon-cutting ceremony on the new Stockton Street Bridge. It was the kind of event that reminds us why we do this work, and why it matters that the public understands it.

The event drew strong local media coverage, with Action News Jax, Jacksonville Daily Record, and News4JAX covering the ribbon cutting and highlighting the engineering story behind the project, exactly the kind of public visibility the Roadshow is designed to generate.

A Project That Delivers on Every Level

The Stockton Street Bridge is far more than a crossing. It’s the centerpiece of the McCoys Creek Restoration Project, a landmark collaboration between the City of Jacksonville and nonprofit Groundwork Jacksonville. The new bridge is wider and elevated by design, engineered specifically to allow water to flow freely beneath it during heavy rain events, a critical upgrade for a community that has long struggled with flooding.

The McCoys Creek stop brought together elected officials, engineers, and public works professionals in exactly the kind of collaborative, community-facing engagement the Roadshow is built around. Mayor Deegan and Director Sickler used the platform to explain in clear, accessible terms how public works and engineering deliver results for Northeast Florida communities. The message resonated: this isn’t just a bridge. It’s a safer neighborhood, a more connected city, and a model for how communities nationwide can think about combining flood control, environmental restoration, and multimodal connectivity into a single, cohesive investment.

The numbers speak for themselves. With more than $100 million committed to managing McCoys Creek flooding and creating neighborhood spaces, this project stands as one of the most significant infrastructure investments in Jacksonville’s history, and the benefits extend well beyond flood control. The bridge includes dedicated bike lanes and sidewalks, physically and figuratively connecting District 7 and District 9 in ways residents haven’t experienced in years.

As Council Member Peluso put it, the project gives residents the ability to reach different parts of the city without depending on a car or a bus. That’s real accessibility, engineered into the landscape.

Putting Engineering in the Spotlight

Moments like yesterday’s ribbon cutting are exactly what the Engineering & Public Works Roadshow was created for. Launched as a joint initiative of ACEC, the American Public Works Association (APWA), and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the Roadshow is the first time America’s engineers and public works professionals have come together on a national platform to celebrate successful infrastructure investment and to make sure the public sees and understands what’s been built on their behalf.

“For decades, McCoys Creek was forced into an artificial straight channel, a decision that destroyed the natural floodplain. The restoration work undoes that. This is what good engineering is all about; not fighting the environment, but working with it. Projects like McCoys Creek are also a powerful reminder of why we need the next generation to consider a career in engineering. If you’re a student looking for work that is meaningful, this is it. If you’re a parent, please bring your kids to places like this and let them see what engineers actually do. We restore creeks, prevent flooding, and help build the kinds of communities where people want to live and raise their families.”

—American Council of Engineering Companies Vice Chair Peter Moore, P.E.

Too often, engineering is invisible. Bridges, flood control systems, bike paths, and water infrastructure work so seamlessly that people simply don’t think about them, until they don’t work. The Roadshow changes that dynamic. By bringing engineers, public officials, and community members together at the project site, we put a human face on infrastructure and tell the story of how engineering decisions directly improve safety, quality of life, and economic opportunity.

The Road Ahead

The Roadshow continues to travel the country with upcoming stops in Tucson and Sedona, Arizona, and Watertown, South Dakota. Each stop is an opportunity to showcase the essential role engineers and public works professionals play in building a safer, stronger, more connected America.

For ACEC member firms, events like this are a tangible demonstration of what our industry does best. When the public sees engineering not as an abstract technical process but as the reason their streets don’t flood, their kids can bike safely to school, and their neighborhoods feel connected, that’s when our value becomes undeniable.

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Learn more about the Engineering & Public Works Roadshow at infrastructureroadshow.org.