To meet the changing dynamics and challenges in managing highway infrastructure, the service must continue to engage with the market sector to encourage innovation that will serve to provide the service with the means to be more versatile in meeting changing environmental, political and funding pressures.
Increased engagement through formal programmes of testing and trialling of new proprietary treatments and technologies will inspire development and add value to how the service is delivered.
Devon is one of only a few highway authorities to retain an in-house Materials Laboratory. This continues to provide a huge advantage in effectiveness and efficiency.
As well as leading a Technical Appraisal Panel (TAP) to evaluate new innovations and maintenance campaigns the Laboratory is involved in all aspects of Asset Management. This includes consultancy on treatment types, specification of materials and analysis of workmanship.
In 2023 Devon County Council was one of seven successful bidders to ADEPT’s Live Labs 2 programme, a £30m DfT-funded scheme aiming to decarbonise the local road network.
DCC’s bid, in partnership with Milestone Infrastructure and the University of Exeter, will receive £3.68m to use on bringing a number of innovations together on the A382 Major Road Network (MRN) scheme with the aim of constructing a carbon negative project.
More information on the project can be found here.
The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the capture and monitoring of asset condition is an exciting industry which is developing at pace. This has also been recognised by the Department for Transport which is currently reviewing its road condition data standards through the trial of emerging AI technologies. Implementing a data standard for road condition monitoring – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The service continues to observe the development of the new condition data standard with a keen interest, however will also ensure that it keeps practically informed through engaging in Devon trials to establish how this technology could add value to our data source for risk-based decision-making.
Two trials are currently underway focusing on road condition and inventory capture of our strategic network and mirroring of our inspection process.