Skip to main content

PennDOT honoured for modernised data collection

PennDOT's modernised field data collection process recently received an international achievement award for its innovative use of geographic information system technology. The Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) Award recognises vision, leadership, hard work and innovative use of technology and was presented at the Esri International User Conference in San Diego. PennDOT received the award for its use of technology to collect information on local roads and bridges such as location, condition and structure type
July 17, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
6111 Pennsylvania Department of Transportation's (PennDOT) modernised field data collection process recently received an international achievement award for its innovative use of geographic information system technology.

The Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) Award recognises vision, leadership, hard work and innovative use of technology and was presented at the Esri International User Conference in San Diego.

PennDOT received the award for its use of technology to collect information on local roads and bridges such as location, condition and structure type. The mobile collection method allows better documentation of local roads and bridges in the department's asset inventory systems and allowed PennDOT to reduce the time to collect information on a single local bridge structure from twenty to six minutes. The software also supported collecting information on more than 30,000 segments of local roads and nearly 3,700 local bridges, replacing paper forms and manual data entry.

“We're very proud to receive this award recognising our efforts to modernise how we do business," PennDOT secretary Barry J Schoch said. "By using innovative, mobile technology we can collect data on state and locally owned roads quickly and more efficiently so that we have current information on road and bridge conditions.”

Related Content

  • December 19, 2017
    Inrix informs FHWA’s data improvements
    Refinements in the data available from the US Federal Highway Administration will improve road management across America. David Crawford reports. In August 2017, the US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) issued the first results from an upgraded version of its National Performance Management Research Data Set (NPMRDS). Developed to identify the locations and times of high congestion affecting traffic flows along America’s 259,000km (161,000 mile) national highway system, this is a key resource for sta
  • August 23, 2023
    The inside story of how traffic chaos was avoided after I-95 collapse
    June’s collapse of major US roadway I-95 in Pennsylvania could have caused lengthy traffic chaos. But - relatively speaking at least - it didn’t and gridlock was avoided. Alan Dron finds out why
  • April 26, 2013
    ITS asset management matters
    Maintenance of on-road ITS kit needs to become more sophisticated; while new technologies can deliver better road maintenance. David Crawford investigates both sides of the issue "Good information is key to effective ITS asset maintenance,” says Ian Routledge of the Ian Routledge Consultancy (IRC), whose Imtrac (Information Management for TRAffic Control) system is poised for European expansion. Developed as an ‘intelligent filing cabinet’ for storing information about on-road equipment, the online database
  • July 30, 2021
    AI is creating road maintenance savings
    Artificial intelligence is starting to create savings for hard-pressed local authorities when it comes to road maintenance. David Crawford reviews recent advances in cost and performance control