The Aeronautics Division of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has received $1 million in funding from the Federal Highway Administration’s Accelerated Innovation Deployment (AID) Demonstration Program, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and authorized to accelerate innovation in highway transportation.
This funding will go toward the second stage of a three-phase project, using Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS, also known as drones), to create a “digital software systems infrastructure.”
Phase one of the project was funded with an AID grant received in 2021 and with additional match funding of $250,000.
Implementing the UAS digital infrastructure to integrate UAS technology into the operations of MassDOT’s Highway Division and a variety of MassDOT agencies will enhance the state’s ability to collect, store, process, and disseminate UAS data throughout MassDOT, according to the agency.
“The Massachusetts Department of Transportation Aeronautics Division is recognized as being a leader in the use of drones for tasks of the Highway Division and the funding from this second phase of the AID grant will give us a unique opportunity to improve and expand digital software systems for drones,” said Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt.
The UAS-based digital infrastructure is designed to integrate with MassDOT Highway projects across Massachusetts, ranging from rural to urban locations, supporting a range of projects, including advanced bridge inspection, asset mapping, construction monitoring, and highway corridor asset detection and/or inspection.
The new technology is anticipated to lower the costs of some projects, provide enhanced asset inspection opportunities, and allow for the monitoring of many construction projects simultaneously, according to MassDOT.
The AID grant request is part of the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s whole of government strategy to compete for federal dollars. This award joins the administration’s record of recent successes, which includes $1.72 billion to replace the Cape Cod Bridges, $335 million for the Allston Multimodal Project and $145 million to lay the groundwork for West-East Rail.
Source: Massachusetts Department of Transportation, IBerkshires.com
