No Boundaries
Transportation Maintenance Innovation
Regularly maintaining the green spaces along highway roadsides is important to ensure that roads are clear and visible, and safety hardware like guardrails and barriers perform effectively.
To discuss the new tools, technologies and strategies that can be used to maintain vegetated areas with less mowing and with fewer chemicals, the Transportation Research Board will host a webinar on October 6 from 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Central.
Image source: Texas Department of Transportation
Attenuator trucks are designed to provide impact protection for workers in and around highway work zones. As a result, drivers of these vehicles often face the greatest hazards.
To increase safety for all maintenance workers, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has conducted several research projects that evaluated driverless attenuators under a variety of conditions on closed test sites and public roads.
To discuss the results of these field trials and Caltrans’ experiences with using driverless attenuators for a variety of highway maintenance activities, Caltrans will host a webinar, “Caltrans Field Trials of the Intelligent Truck-Mounted Attenuator” on September 18 from 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. Central.
Image source: Caltrans
Roadside assets such as guardrails, barriers, curbs and shoulders require routine maintenance to ensure they perform as intended to increase safety for all road users. However, monitoring the condition of these assets manually can be time-consuming and costly for public transportation agencies.
To make it easier for maintenance workers to evaluate and manage the state’s roadside assets, the Utah Department of Transportation conducted a research study that developed a framework for using advanced artificial intelligence to detect and evaluate a variety of assets.
Read the report: Asset Condition Assessment Using AI and Computer Vision, July 2025.
Image source: Utah Department of Transportation
If not properly stored, roadway salt can wash or blow away – wasting valuable resources and potentially contaminating nearby soils and waterways.
To help transportation agencies design and build salt storage structures that suit their needs, the Clear Roads pooled fund conducted a research project that developed tools and guidance for creating structures that are appropriate for their location and consider the volume of salt to be stored, the agency’s budget and other factors.
Read the two-page research brief: Developing Templates for Salt Shed Design and Construction, August 2025.
Image source: Clear Roads Pooled Fund
With its third phase coming to an end, the No Boundaries Transportation Maintenance Innovations pooled fund has published a summary of the group’s activities from 2020 to 2025.
The No Boundaries pooled fund is a community of practice dedicated to identifying and sharing innovations that help states save time and money on all aspects of their maintenance-related activities. The group promotes adaptation, implementation and broader use of successful tools, technologies and practices, and facilitates opportunities that encourage collaboration.
No Boundaries’ fourth phase will build upon its previous work to support successful tech transfer. The group hosts two in-person peer exchanges each year where member representatives can meet and discuss their challenges and innovative maintenance solutions. No Boundaries also supports a variety of additional opportunities for learning and exchanging knowledge, and maintains a searchable online database where maintenance innovations can be found and showcased by transportation agencies at all levels of government.
Download No Boundaries’ new Phase III Summary of Activities, and learn how to join the next phase of No Boundaries at TPF-5(548).
A penetrating sealer can increase the durability and performance of a concrete pavement, but whether sealer should be applied before or after pavement markings may not be well understood.
To determine whether a concrete sealer affects the adhesion or reflectivity of pavement markings and which should be applied to a concrete pavement first, the Nebraska Department of Transportation conducted a research study that tested the effects of different sealers placed over or under markings consisting of paint and reflective glass beads.
Read the report: Effect of Penetrating Concrete Sealers on Pavement Marking, May 2025.
Image source: Nebraska Department of Transportation