“A force to be reckoned with,” is how Leon Daniels introduces Anna Delvecchio in his ‘Lunch with Leon’ podcast.

One of the most influential women in transport, she joined the industry as an apprentice and after a rising through a varied range of posts is now Development Director of Transportation at Mott MacDonald.

She talks about why the industry needs to change the perception of transport among youngsters, to encourage the talent of tomorrow.

“We rise by lifting others,” she says, as she explains the importance of mentoring and professional-development support networks, alongside recognising rising stars. 

That ethos also flows through to Highways Sector Council, launched during lockdown, of which she is a member.

“We are stronger together than separately,” she says about the public-private partnership that is sponsored by the Department for Transport.

And here too, the old ways of working are being challenged. She explains how the council created a plan, presented to the DfT, to take advantage of lockdown by bringing forward major road repairs and improvements while traffic was at its lowest levels since the 1940s.

With a passion for transport she sets out how the industry can encourage young people to join the UK’s most dynamic and exciting sector with its vast range of opportunities and career paths.

She says that we need a new showcase for transport that changes the perception of ‘who does what’ among young people, to show them that transport roles are much wider than the stereotypical one of driving.