Florida is rolling out a first-in-the-nation lane-closure system to alert drivers of road and bridge construction zones to keep workers and drivers safer.
The new system sends real-time alerts to drivers through their navigation apps. The notifications will come the same way as drivers typically receive alerts on their apps for such things as traffic accidents or congestion, FDOT says.
Supervisors at work zones will input information, such as beginning and end points of lane closures, temporary work zone speed-limit changes, and construction worker presence. The system uses one.network’s Live Link smartphone app to take the supervisors’ information to map out lane closures and deliver alerts to navigation apps.
The FDOT began testing the system in June and plans to roll it out as part of a one-year pilot program over the next three months. FDOT says the alerts over the system will be delivered to apps such as Google Maps, Waze, TomTom and Apple Maps as the mapping companies decide to use the feature.
“The one-year pilot will cover all planned construction sites across more than 12,000 miles of state roads in FDOT’s seven regional districts and Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise,” FDOT says.
FDOT expects the following benefits from the program:
- Reduction in work zone crashes, fatalities and serious injuries.
- Improved worker safety.
- More construction lane closures identified and tracked in real-time.
- Improved travel time reliability and reduced congestion by informing drivers about lane closures.
The Florida Transportation Builders Association is another partner in the pilot program.
“This innovative real-time Lane Closure Notification System is the first of its kind in North America and will be essential for improving construction worker and motorist safety in work zones across Florida,” said Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared W. Perdue. “We appreciate the opportunity to be the first in the nation to utilize this state-of-the-art technology and look forward to further collaboration with our construction, maintenance and technology partners to advance FDOT’s safety goals.”
