Innovator | 2020 | September/October

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) and city of Joliet conducted virtual public outreach over the summer to gather input on the proposed Interstate 55 at Illinois 59 access project. The purpose of the project is to address congestion and provide safer, more efficient travel on I-55 and regional and local roadway networks. Instead of holding an in-person public meeting, IDOT invited the public to visit the project website to learn about and comment on preferred project alternatives and next steps of the project study. This virtual public involvement effort complemented earlier public meetings to explain the study process and solicit feedback. In addition to the website, outreach included a mailed newsletter and the opportunity to ask questions and leave comments for IDOT staff by phone.

The Maine Department of Transportation (MaineDOT) is advancing its use of crowdsourced data to monitor road conditions. The agency developed and is testing an application for work crews to more easily and safely communicate weather and road conditions. In the past, crews radioed MaineDOT’s Traffic Management Center to share information, which led to report backlogs during storms and reports that stayed active for too long. Information reported with the new app is available through MaineDOT’s Compass Advanced Traffic Management System and on NewEngland511.org when poor driving conditions are reported. The app improves the temporal accuracy of road and weather data and allows the traffic center to focus on incident identification and response during storms.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has benefited from using project bundling on a variety of project types, including bridge and culvert construction, emergency repairs, pavement resurfacing, maintenance activities, bridge scrubbing, bridge joint repair, safety improvements, traffic operation improvements, and intelligent transportation systems. Through bundling, NCDOT has experienced cost savings and increased efficiencies in several phases of project delivery. Benefits include the ability to standardize design elements across multiple projects, lower contract administrative and mobilization costs, and more effective use of crews and equipment. NCDOT has found that letting individual projects can limit bidder interest, but bundling projects can attract more attention and increase competition.

To expand its paperless initiative and improve asset management, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) implemented electronic ticketing for hot-mix asphalt deliveries. Using State Transportation Innovation Council Incentive funds, UDOT completed seven e-Ticketing pilot projects that collected more than 2,900 electronic tickets, representing nearly 70,000 tons of asphalt placed. In the past, it was difficult to determine where on a project the material covered by an individual ticket was placed. Using e-Ticketing allows UDOT to map the location of materials so it can create an accurate record of its largest asset for pavement management purposes. e-Ticketing also improves safety for UDOT inspectors because they do not have to collect paper tickets from delivery drivers and eliminates the need for crews to total tickets on a jobsite, reducing computational errors. UDOT plans to expand e-Ticketing for asphalt, as well as pursue it for concrete deliveries.