The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) recently released its Focus on Innovations publication, which highlights innovations recently implemented across the organization to improve safety and develop more efficient processes.
PennDOT has undertaken and implemented more than 60 continuous improvement initiatives and nearly 200 employee-driven innovations over the last few years. These initiatives and innovations have saved almost 29,000 hours and transformed processes, procedures, and programs.
The innovations came from an employee suggestion system, employee-driven innovation councils and committees, a smart practice sharing tool, and the State Transportation Innovation Council (STIC).
“Our ability to adapt and continuously stay ahead of new technologies and best practices has kept the Commonwealth at the forefront of innovation,” said Mike Carroll, PennDOT acting secretary. “Our continued focus on identifying unique solutions to complex problems is critical to the continued success of Pennsylvania’s multi-modal transportation network.”
STIC and Federal Highway Administration Every Day Counts (EDC) progress and successes also are highlighted.
An EDC Round 6 innovation PennDOT pursued is e-Ticketing for the receipt of aggregate, asphalt, and concrete materials for PennDOT projects. e-Ticketing is more efficient and promotes job site safety by reducing lost tickets, time taken in sorting tickets, and navigation of worksite hazards.
The program will expand further this year.