Freida L. Byrd

Freida K. Byrd serves as a Contract Specialist within the 693JJ3 Acquisition and Grants Management unit of the Federal Highway Administration, where she plays a pivotal role in executing procurements that advance the nation’s transportation infrastructure through technical and research-driven solutions. She manages the full lifecycle of contracts for engineering services, transportation research, and operational consulting, ensuring alignment with federal acquisition regulations and the agency’s mission to enhance highway safety, resilience, and innovation. Her work directly supports data-informed infrastructure planning by securing high-caliber technical expertise from qualified vendors and academic institutions. Byrd maintains consistent working relationships with key contractors including K & M Transportation Services LLC and the University of California, Los Angeles, reflecting a blend of private-sector engineering capabilities and academic research excellence. Her procurement approach emphasizes performance-based contracting and outcome-driven deliverables, fostering long-term partnerships with vendors capable of delivering complex, mission-critical services in transportation systems analysis, infrastructure modeling, and operational efficiency studies. Her contracting patterns show a strong preference for open competition, with 100% of her awards issued under no set-aside classifications. This reflects a strategic focus on selecting the most technically qualified offerors regardless of socioeconomic status, while still complying with all small business outreach requirements. She does not prioritize 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB set-asides, instead emphasizing merit-based selection grounded in technical merit and past performance. Byrd’s procurement portfolio is heavily concentrated in NAICS 541330 (Engineering Services), followed by 541715 and 541712 (Research and Development in Physical and Engineering Sciences), underscoring her specialization in technical consulting, transportation systems analysis, and infrastructure innovation. She routinely procures services related to pavement performance modeling, traffic safety studies, and intelligent transportation systems, demonstrating deep domain expertise in civil engineering and transportation research.