AASHTO Journal - TxDOT Turns Two Trucks into Key Messaging Tools

The Texas Department of Transportation recently transformed two of its work trucks into parade floats for the Houston Art Car Parade as part of its work zone awareness and anti-littering outreach efforts.

[Above photo by TxDOT]

The annual Houston Art Car Parade attracts a wide variety of participants and spectators – with 350,000 people attending the parade and associated festivities in 2024 – with entries that include anything on wheels from bicycles and unicycles to lawnmowers, cars, and go-carts.

James Keener, a traffic engineer with TxDOT’s Houston District, spent a decade bringing specialized “message trucks” to life.

In 2023, his Houston team entered a vehicle called the “Traffic Safety Cone Monster,” which received first place honors while highlighting work zone awareness and other traffic safety messaging.

For the 2024 parade, Keener decided to enter two vehicles. He assembled a team of TxDOT volunteers that spent several weeks transforming two agency trucks – on loan for the effort – into the “Game of Cones-Construction is Coming” and “Found on Road-Don’t mess with Texas” parade entrants.

Decorated with barrels, cones, safety vests, signs, barricades, signals, reflective sheeting, and other materials, the “Game of Cones” vehicle highlighted the importance of work zone safety and how critical it is to slow down, stay off the phone, and use caution while traveling through work zones.

Meanwhile, the team adorned the “Don’t mess with Texas” vehicle with anti-litter messaging as well as various pieces of debris found on state roadways, including a car bumper and furniture pieces – encouraging the public to not litter on state roadways while also highlighting the kinds of debris that wind up on state roads.

“Many folks from around the country came out and got up close to the creations – including our vehicles,” Keener said in a statement; with hundreds if not thousands of visitors stopping by TxDOT’s booth after the parade to check the trucks out more closely.

“Our team at the booth passed on our messages of ‘work zone safety’ and ‘keeping roads clean’ to many thousands of individuals while both vehicles rolled through the parade route to many cheers,” Keener said. “At the end of the day the team was tired, hot, but so happy that the day was such a success.”