Emerging Tech in Transportation: How Does Your State Stack Up?
Imagine the ideal transportation experience – safe, resilient, welcoming, capable of efficiently connecting us to where we live, work and play. Now imagine what your state’s transportation landscape looks like. How does it stack up?
Walk around the office in the morning and you’re bound to overhear coworkers chatting about their drive in. Scroll through twitter and I’ll bet plenty of disgruntled commuters or frustrated passengers are sharing opinions on their latest unfortunate transportation experience. Our network of transportation is an important part of our daily lives – we want our highways, railroads, mass transit systems, and waterways to get us where we need to go, and often, that’s easier said than done.
Setting the foundation for a smart state
It may never be perfect, but at its best, a great transportation system would feed a healthy economy, encourage travel, and make life easier for residents and visitors. State governments and Departments of Transportation (DoT) have a responsibility to balance the needs of the state when it comes to finances and sustainability, while supporting the expectations of the travelers themselves.
As technology rapidly shifts, traveler expectations will shift, too. A smart car driving down a road filled with potholes certainly doesn’t deliver on the promise of a future-ready, smart community. For a truly connected, smart state you need a solid baseline of resilient, adaptable transportation infrastructure. Emerging technology can help the modern DoT keep up with a faster-paced, information-driven society and go beyond the basics – it’s not just about getting from point A to point B anymore, it’s about delivering positive outcomes for travelers and your state at the same time.
Elevating your transportation technology
Take lighting as an example, which can be a concept that works seamlessly across your transportation system to improve operations and help meet sustainability goals. We know that well-lit highways are safer, but did you know that smart highway lighting can detect flood water levels or can be customized with Night Sky Protection to minimize light pollution?
DoT leaders are looking toward the future of their fleets, too. With hundreds or even thousands of vehicles in operation consuming large amounts of energy each day, fleet electrification is emerging as a way to tie together sustainability and operational improvements. Though the shift toward this trend may be gradual, the benefits are clear: states will save on fuel and maintenance costs as they reduce emissions, while residents enjoy less noise pollution and better air quality in their communities.
Do these types of projects sound out of reach? Transportation improvement doesn’t have to be a costly undertaking. These initiatives represent an opportunity to discover energy savings, which can help remove funding barriers to the project and bring smarter state infrastructure within reach.
Emerging technology provides states the chance to take steps toward making their community a bustling, exciting, sustainable, and efficient place to live, work, and visit.