Maintaining the Crossroads of America
The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) is charged with maintaining over 11,000 miles of state, federal,
and interstate highways. In order to ensure the highest quality transportation system for the citizens of Indiana,
INDOT needed a way to report roadway deficiencies that would ensure timely response and repair. In addition to
knowing how many and what kind of deficiencies exist on a given road, INDOT also wanted to know the exact location
of each. This would allow maintenance personnel to return to that location with the materials they needed to fix
the problem: paint, pothole filler, light bulbs, etc.
INDOT decided to tailor a GIS (geographic information systems) application already in use by the department. Doing
so meant they could add new GIS and GPS capabilities while leveraging existing product licenses, in-house training,
and technical support personnel.
INDOT developed an easy-to-use graphical interface, and loaded the new application onto touch-screen laptops. The new
system allows field crews to simply push a button when they see a problem like damaged guardrails, crumbling curbs, or
a broken stoplight. Behind the scenes the application logs the type and location of the deficiency, along with the
route, district, date, and other associated data.
Results
The data being collected by field crews is integrated into reports and tracking systems allowing INDOT management to:
- See the current condition of the state's transportation infrastructure
- Plan work crew assignments efficiently
- Purchase supplies and materials based on precise maintenance needs
- Assure appropriate distribution of supplies to District or Sub District offices
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