Lexington Public Works Installs Sensors Within Roadways
Lexington was approached by Tensar to test advanced sensing roadway technologies via the installation of sensors within the roadway structure. Tensar is a company with decades of experience in geogrid technology used in numerous applications including reinforced roadway construction. Partnering with them to test advanced sensing roadway technologies seemed to have the potential of a long-term value for the industry and the community. Advances in sensing and connectivity technologies enable these sensors to be designed to withstand the challenges of being embedded in the depths of the road support structure. This data from these sensors can then be “pushed” via a 5G or satellite connection to a cloud-based analytics platform where AI and Machine Learning algorithms detect patterns in the data. These patterns, when analyzed over time, could identify issues early, before major problems occur.
This “advanced warning” can enable operators to optimize maintenance budgets and implement Condition Based or Predictive maintenance strategies, helping to identify the right maintenance procedures to be performed at the right time.
To work with Tensar in the evaluation of this advanced sensing technology we installed 14 sensors under the concrete and within the asphalt at the intersection of Bedford Street and Hancock Street. This is a bit of a unique location as it has fairly heavy traffic volumes and also is within a roundabout where both asphalt and concrete are present. The concrete serves as a truck apron so does not receive the same traffic volumes as the asphalt but is the recipient of the much heavier truck loading.
We hope that our cooperation allows this technology to advance in a way that it may be used in a more widespread fashion providing advanced warnings for more proactive