On 19 May Louise McCormick, a member of our speaker bureau, was awarded the Roads Australia 2022 John Shaw Medal. Louise is only the second woman to win this prestigious award, and the first Northern Territory-based recipient.
Louise’s impact throughout northern Australia has been significant. Her leadership as the Northern Territory’s Infrastructure Commissioner benefits the entire community and economy. Louise is firmly committed to making the Northern Territory safer, more accessible and better able to do business. She takes a whole-of-region view to make sure transport systems work together to lift productivity, enhance community amenity and create jobs.
Throughout her career, Louise has nurtured meaningful and enduring relationships with stakeholders, including industry and peak bodies, other jurisdictional colleagues, Aboriginal Land Councils and Traditional Owners.
In a previous role as General Manager, Transport and Civil Services, in the NT Government, Louise implemented a new rolling upgrade program for strategic transport corridors so that projects were rolled out over a longer period of time instead of concurrently. This improved the affordability of upgrade works and created certainty around the project pipeline, allowing industry to provide more sustainable jobs and to train and employ more Aboriginal people from remote communities.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Louise was also responsible for making sure freight continued flowing to Territory communities in a COVID-safe way and without disadvantaging Territorians.
The John Shaw Medal recognises outstanding service to road transport in Australia and is awarded annually by Roads Australia. Winners are judged to have made a contribution of outstanding national or international significance, of unique value to the industry and to the community, reflecting original and personal endeavour. Nominees are also assessed on the extent to which their contribution is likely to endure and be remembered by future generations.