PennDOT Issues New ‘Focus on Innovations’ Report

May 16, 2025

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation recently released the latest version of its Focus on Innovations or FOI report that highlights its efforts to identify and boost innovative projects that improve safety, promote efficiency, and save money.

[Above image by PennDOT]

“Meeting the needs of Pennsylvania’s vast transportation network requires unique solutions,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll in a statement. “Across the Commonwealth, the PennDOT team is rolling out electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure, delivering projects faster, tackling congestion, and improving safety.”

Mike Carroll. Photo by PennDOT.

[Editor’s note: Carroll also serves as chair of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Committee on Transportation Communications, known as TransComm.]

Now in its fourth year, the agency’s FOI publication – which includes an interactive innovation timeline – emphasizes that innovation at PennDOT is a “holistic process,” pulling unique ideas and best practices from both inside and outside the department.

Carroll added that employee-driven innovation councils and committees, the State Transportation Innovation Council, the Federal Highway Administration’s Every Day Counts program, and solutions identified and implemented by PennDOT employees all combine to build better, more efficient, and more intuitive systems to serve all Pennsylvanians and those who travel throughout the Commonwealth.

Some of the endeavors highlighted in PennDOT’s FOI report include: 

  • The Lane Reservation or “LaneRez” initiative helps maximize safety while minimizing congestion with a system to catalog upcoming construction projects, identify conflicts and plan ahead for traffic mitigation.
  • PennDOT’s digital transformation initiative focuses on using paperless technologies to transform the project delivery process by providing project data at the fingertips of our employees and partners.
  • The implementation of Environmental Product Declarations allows PennDOT to utilize construction materials with lower greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Amber and green vehicle lights, enabled by Act 78 of 2024, helps increase safety by making PennDOT’s construction and maintenance operations more visible.
  • The agency’s ongoing EV infrastructure buildout, powered by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, has helped expand EV-charging-station availability statewide, making EVs more accessible to the travelling public.
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