PHILADELPHIA, PA — The Engineers’ Club of Philadelphia has named Sarah McInnes, P.E., senior assistant construction engineer for District 6 at the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, as the 2026 Delaware Valley Engineer of the Year, the organization announced.
The award recognizes a local engineer for professional achievement, civic leadership and community service. McInnes was selected by representatives of local multidisciplinary engineering and technical societies and was honored during Delaware Valley Engineers Week, as part of National Engineers Week.
McInnes has worked at PennDOT for nearly three decades. During that time, she has been involved in major transportation projects in Southeastern Pennsylvania, including reconstruction along Interstate 95, improvements to Interstate 476 over karst formations and mitigation of sinkhole activity beneath Route 422, Route 202 and Interstate 76.
She began her PennDOT career in 1997 as a staff geotechnical engineer and later served more than 13 years as district geotechnical engineer. In that role, she implemented geotechnical technologies and asset management strategies aimed at improving project delivery and reducing long-term maintenance costs.
In her current position, McInnes oversees a team of 55 professionals within PennDOT District 6 and manages a construction services program supporting infrastructure projects across Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties. Her responsibilities have included supervising multidisciplinary teams, managing multimillion-dollar consultant contracts and providing field support for emergency and routine operations.
“I am honored my passion has shown through,” McInnes said. “I don’t see this as a reward so much as an acknowledgement of the work I’ve put in and the passion and care I bring to what I do.”
In addition to her work at PennDOT, McInnes serves as a guest lecturer at Temple University and Villanova University and mentors students through PennDOT and local school district programs. She has authored more than 20 technical papers presented at national and international conferences on topics including sinkhole evaluation and highway design in karst environments.
Her previous honors include the PennDOT Star of Excellence Award and recognition from the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Philadelphia Section as both Geotechnical Engineer of the Year and Civil Engineer of the Year.
McInnes earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Syracuse University and a master’s degree in civil engineering from Villanova University.
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