Tyeisha, our Caltrans PIO

Editor’s Note: This story is being republished with permission from the Mountaineer Progress in Wrightwood.

By Carol Bishop
Mountaineer Progress 

Can you remember the last time there was no construction on any of our area roads?  It seems like it’s been going on for years, and depending where you drive on Interstate 15, State Route 138, or even the local roads, it has been. Due to wear and tear, growth and demand, California’s road systems are continually been repaired, improved, and expanded. And while this work eventually benefits us, it is often an inconvenience. The job of a Caltrans Public Information Officer (PIO) is to make the process as painless and successful as possible.

Tyeisha Prunty is one of the officers for Caltrans District 8. Along with being responsible for SR-138, she handles the PIO duties for state routes 10, 60, 86, 91, 111, 177 and 210!  To keep the public aware of ongoing projects, a PIO must maintain constant contact with each project’s team, consisting of the project manager, resident engineer, inspector, and contractor. She then communicates the information to the affected constituents via face-to-face meetings with individuals, groups, and/or communities, via email and websites, and via television, radio, and/or newspaper advertising as appropriate. 

Part of her job is to know the people being affected by the project well enough that she can determine the most effective means of communication. Tyeisha has found that face-to-face communication, supplemented with email and news releases, works best here in our rural, small-town Tri-Community. She incorporated television into the SR-138 full-closure notification blitz to reach the truck drivers who travel that route.

While most of us have heard of the town meetings she has held in Phelan and Wrightwood, many may not know that Tyeisha has also met, and is always willing to meet, with individuals. She states that when a person or business has specific concerns or needs, she is eager to come to their site and get the whole picture. She conveys this information to the build team and also explains state and federal regulations and historical, environmental, and physical constraints placed on the project. Getting people to understand the nature of what Caltrans can and cannot do is just one of the challenges of her job.

Another challenge of information dissemination is timing. Tyeisha first ensures the information she has is accurate and the best she can obtain at the moment. Then she decides who needs it and how to get it to them. She also looks at possible conflicts or possibilities for confusion. An example of this is the 138 full-closure scheduled for Sept. 8 - 11.  While she previously introduced the closure, she waited until after Labor Day to put out her informational blitz so as not to confuse holiday-goers.

With an area of responsibility that stretches throughout both San Bernardino and Riverside counties, Tyeisha spends a lot of time driving the roads. Not only doesn’t she mind all the travel, but she sees it as an opportunity; when she spies something new or something she doesn’t know about, she’ll take notes and follow-up back at the office to be prepared and able to serve us better. 

Tyeisha considers herself a good match for her multi-faceted position. An A-type personality, she likes to be challenged and is always learning. It was a few years and a couple different jobs after graduating from California State University, San Bernardino, with a major in Business Administration and a concentration in Entrepreneurial Management before she found employment with Caltrans, first as an analyst, then as an executive secretary, and finally as a public information officer. A favorite part of her job is that every day, even after three years in this position, she learns something new, be it regarding the roads or the communities with which she is working.

Although the SR-138 project is finally coming to an end, we know roadwork in our area will not. The next time we might see Tyeisha is when she begins facilitating communication regarding the upcoming Sheep Creek Bridge project in Wrightwood. If you would like to receive project update emails for that, send her a request at tyeisha.prunty@dot.ca.gov.