The Department of Highway and Environmental Engineering began to write its history shortly after the establishment of the University of Transport in Žilina, in 1963, when the issue of road construction also began to develop at the Faculty of PEDaS, Department of Railway Construction. Road construction subjects were taught at the Track Construction, Maintenance and Reconstruction course (SÚRT) and also at the then Military Faculty within the Road Construction course. The year 1975, when the field of study with a focus on road construction called Construction, maintenance and reconstruction of land roads (SÚRPK), was established as a major milestone in the development of the department. In 1980, in connection with the new field of study, the employees of the Department of Railway Construction with a focus on road construction were separated and a new department was created - the Department of Construction Design and Reconstruction of Land Roads (KPSRPK). The department fully ensures the profile of the SÚRPK department. In 1982, the former department of railway construction and the department focused on road construction were merged again, and the Department of Design, Construction and Reconstruction of Railways and Land Roads was created. In 1984, separate departments were re-established at the department. As part of the joint department, there is also the Department of Design, Construction and Reconstruction of Land Roads, providing the same-named field of study. As part of the reorganization of the study, in 1986 at the then faculty of PEDaS, the study department was modified to the Department of Reconstruction and Maintenance of Transport Structures (RÚDS) and subsequently three former departments were merged into the Department of Railway and Road Construction (KŽCS). The Department of Design, Construction and Reconstruction of Land Roads operates separately at the department. A major milestone in the development of the department was the year 1991, when a separate department was again established at the renewed Faculty of Civil Engineering - the Department of Road Construction. From 1.6. 2021, the department is run under the name Department of Highway and Environmental Engineering, abbreviated as KCEI.

 Currently, study programs and scientific fields are developed at the department within two departments:

• road design, traffic and environmental engineering
• road diagnostics and maintenance