Katie Johnson

Chip seals are a cost-effective and often-used strategy for maintaining and preserving pavements.

To ensure that the chip seal treatments applied on the state’s highways perform well and last a long time, the Oregon Department of Transportation initiated a research study to identify tests that can be performed during the application process. The project’s findings will help the agency enhance its chip seal procedures and maximize its maintenance investments.   

Read the report: Development of Procedures and Technologies for Chip Seal Construction Quality Control in Oregon, February 2025.

Image source: Oregon Department of Transportation

Roadsides planted with greenery can help control and filter stormwater, soil leftover from road construction often lacks permeability and inhibits plant growth.

To improve soil conditions along the state’s roads and identify a use for locally available industrial by-products, the Minnesota Department of Transportation evaluated nine granular and organic additives.  

The project produced a design guide and recommendations for maximizing biofiltration and plant growth.

Read the two-page research summary: Reusing Local By-Products to Create Sustainable Roadside Soil, October 2024.

Image source: Minnesota Department of Transportation

Ditches that run alongside a roadway are important for keeping excess stormwater away from the road’s surface. To ensure proper slope and drainage, routine maintenance often includes removing sediment build-up and replanting vegetation to help reduce pollution to lakes and rivers downstream.

To better understand how different types of vegetation and maintenance practices can affect how much excess water and pollutants reach these vulnerable water bodies, the Ohio Department of Transportation initiated a research study focused on cost-effective strategies for improving runoff quality.

Read the report: Treatment of Nitrogen and Phosphorus in Runoff by Vegetated and Unvegetated Ditches, December 2024.

Image source: Ohio Department of Transportation

Effectively managing excess stormwater is critical to prevent flooding and minimize safety hazards, property damage and environmental contamination.

To provide cities and counties across Minnesota with maintenance recommendations and best practices for managing stormwater runoff, the Minnesota Department of Transportation and Local Road Research Board produced the comprehensive Stormwater BMP Inspection and Maintenance Resource Guide, which updates the previous 2009 version with the new research, tools and innovative practices that have since become available.

Read the two-page research summary: Revised Stormwater Maintenance Guide Updates Common Practices and Offers Innovative Options, July 2024.

Image source: Minnesota Local Road Research Board

The January/February 2025 issue of Innovator, the bimonthly newsletter of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), kicks off the new year by recognizing the efforts of several No Boundaries member states.

The Colorado Department of Transportation was commended for its commitment to using and requiring environmental product declarations, which describe the environmental impacts of construction materials like a nutrition label does for food.  

Virginia DOT was lauded for its use of a multi-faceted variable speed limit system that monitors road conditions and automatically adjusts a road’s posted speed limits, reducing crashes in foggy conditions by more than 75 percent.

Indiana and Michigan DOTs were each awarded federal Accelerated Innovation Deployment (AID) Demonstration grants during the program’s 2023 cycle. Indiana will use the funds to pilot a work zone safety initiative that automatically detects and photographs speeding vehicles in active construction work zones. Michigan, which received grants for two projects, will incorporate innovative materials and cost-effective and structurally efficient methods to replace two aging bridges in the state.

Finally, New York State and North Dakota DOTs were both noted for their innovative projects. New York is working to reconnect communities that were severed by a viaduct in the 1950s, and to provide jobs to local workers interested in the project. North Dakota recently published a study showing the safety benefits of roundabouts and other lower-conflict intersection designs.

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Image source: FHWA