Principal Technical Advisor for Ground Vehicle Fuels, Electrification, and Deployment

Michael (Mike) Scarpino is the principal technical advisor for ground vehicle fuels, electrification, and deployment at the U.S. DOT Volpe Center. He joined the U.S. DOT Volpe Center in 2013 and focuses on providing technical and programmatic support for the U.S. DOT and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for various transportation electrification and alternative fuel initiatives and activities, such as the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program (JO), FHWA’s Alternative Fuel Corridor Designation Initiative (AFC), and DOE’s Clean Cities and Communities partnership. 

Most recently, Scarpino provided thought and programmatic leadership to the JO as the acting lead for the Technical Assistance (TA) team and is currently the JO’s States & Corridor Electrification Deployment Manager on the TA team. Additionally, he is the lead for the eight-state Northeast Region. These roles included providing technical leadership and direction to the TA team staff, managing the staffing and overall budgets, serving as the main POC between the JO and the state contacts and teams implementing NEVI program, and ensuring the quality of the TA was as high as possible. Scarpino also was a founding member of the JO, having been at the table during the initial discussions and meetings with DOE and U.S. DOT that established the framework and structure of the JO. As the program manager for the U.S. DOT Volpe Center’s JO support, he also coordinates and oversees the efforts of more than 20 U.S. DOT Volpe Center staff. Finally, Scarpino often represents the JO in public events, forums, and ribbon cuttings as a messenger and technical representative for their overall program. 

Scarpino also has led the AFC program for the U.S. DOT Volpe Center since its inception, having constructed and overseen the U.S. DOT Volpe Center’s key technical AFC support to FHWA. His leadership was key to forming a support team that provided important analyses and decision structures for sound corridor designations each round. 

Spanning more than 27 years, Scarpino has supported and provided leadership to DOE’s Clean Cities and Communities partnership and Vehicle Technologies Office. This support has included working on public-private partnerships and projects that provide federal support for the alternative fuels industry’s market transformation efforts related to vehicle deployment, as well as charging and fueling infrastructure development.   

In addition to numerous U.S. DOT and DOE awards and recognitions, Connecticut Governor John Roland declared June 12, 2001 as “Michael Scarpino Day” in the State of Connecticut for “dedication, commitment, and efforts to raise the standards of excellence for environmental stewardship in the State of Connecticut and for outstanding contributions to the Connecticut Clean Cities Coalitions, which fielded a number of Alternative Fueled Vehicles, Fueling Stations, and conducted many outreach sessions that help improve air quality and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.” 

Scarpino’s nearly 40-year federal career includes working for 12 years as a nuclear engineer for the Department of the Navy's Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in New Hampshire and DOE’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina.   

Scarpino is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maine.