The Department for Transport’s Head of Highways Maintenance, Innovation and Resilience, Steve Berry has died.

He had been ill for some months after being diagnosed with incurable cancer towards the end of last year. He was surrounded by his family at home when he passed away on Wednesday evening.

Steve worked for the DfT for 31 years having started as a messenger in Ministers’ offices. He was awarded the OBE in 2014 for services to local highways, innovation and resilience.

Tributes are being paid on an online condolence book at https://steveberry.muchloved.com/.

Here is a flavour of the tributes:

“Such a gent and a true loss to the industry, my thoughts are with his family”

“Dedicated, collaborative, determined, inclusive are all words that can be used to describe Steve’s gifts, but perhaps his greatest gift was the selfless way he made people feel valued. Our industry has lost a champion for change and a warrior who fiercely upheld public service values. He just made things happen where lesser mortals would have failed. He brought out the best in others. I respected and admired Steve, he was my friend, and I will miss him. I offer my deepest sympathies to his family and colleagues.”

“Such sad news, my condolences to his family. A dedicated man and a true professional in his field.”

“Steve’s hard work and dedication has left a lasting impact on the Light Rail sector in the UK. A huge amount of what we have achieved wouldn’t have been possible without Steve’s support, guidance and enthusiasm. We will miss him greatly, but he leaves a forever lasting imprint in our industry. Our thoughts are with all Steve’s family, friends and colleagues.”

(Picture – steveberry.muchloved.com)