Carlos M. Contreras Aponte is a Puerto Rican civil engineer. He is the
Secretary of Transportation and Public Works of Puerto Rico
The secretary of transportation and public works of Puerto Rico () leads the Department of Transportation and Public Works of Puerto Rico and leads all efforts related to transportation and public works in Puerto Rico
; abbreviated PR), ...
as well as the executive director of the
Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority
The Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority (PRHTA) (ACT) is the government-owned corporation of Puerto Rico charged with constructing, operating, and maintaining roads, bridges, avenues, highways, tunnels, public parkings, tolls ...
. Contreras Aponte is the first
blind person to lead the Department of Transportation.
Contreras Aponte was born in
San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico
San Lorenzo (, ; Spanish for "''Saint Lawrence"'') is a San Lorenzo barrio-pueblo, town and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality of Puerto Rico located in the eastern central region, north of Patillas, Puerto Rico, Patillas and Yabucoa, Pu ...
. He obtained his Bachelor's and master's degrees in Civil Engineering from the
University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
The University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus (UPRM) or Recinto Universitario de Mayagüez (RUM) in Spanish (also referred to as Colegio and CAAM in allusion to its former name), is a Public university, public land-grant university in Mayagüez ...
. He also holds various engineering certifications such as Professional Traffic Operations Engineer. In 2012, he was recognized as Distinguished Engineer by the
Institute of Transportation Engineers
The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) is an international educational and scientific association of transportation professionals who are responsible for meeting mobility and safety needs. ITE facilitates the application of technology and ...
. He was Chief of the Highway Authority's Office of Traffic Engineering.
He is a member of
Phi Sigma Alpha
Phi Sigma Alpha (), commonly known as La Sigma, is a Puerto Rican fraternity originally established as the Sigma Delta Alpha Fraternity (Sociedad de Amigos) on October 22, 1928, at the University of Puerto Rico by twelve students and a professor ...
fraternity.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Contreras Aponte, Carlos
Living people
Members of the 17th Cabinet of Puerto Rico
People from San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican civil engineers
Secretaries of Transportation and Public Works of Puerto Rico
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century American engineers
American blind people
University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez people
Puerto Rican people with disabilities
American scientists with disabilities
21st-century Puerto Rican engineers