One of the traffic volume and speed sensors used for the Smart Work Zone System on I-295. Paul Bagnall / The Times Record
The Maine Department of Transportation is trying out a new technology on a stretch of Interstate 295 aimed at keeping road crews safe and drivers alert.
MDOT has set up a Smart Work Zone System on a stretch of interstate between Gardiner and Topsham, where crews are preserving pavement.
Sensors are placed on the highway 2 miles ahead of the work zone to measure traffic volume and speed data in real time, according to Mike Lenko, MDOT senior technician. That data is not stored, according to MDOT.
The sensors are spaced out every half mile before the work zone and communicate with message boards to display early warnings to drivers about upcoming road work. MDOT Senior Project Manager Shawn Smith said it is a warning system to prevent panicked stops from drivers that could lead to an accident.
“We’ve been wanting to push [the Smart Work Zone System] out as kind of a pilot to see how it would work, and we thought this would be a great project based on the type of work [being done],” Smith said.
The sensors also broadcast signals to GPS units that show slowed and stopped traffic status on roads. It is another tool for MDOT to use alongside the speed limit and caution signs typically seen on highway work zones.
“It’s to make our work zones safer for not just our workers but the traveling public as well,” Smith said.
The pavement preservation will last through the summer, scheduled to wrap up in November. A longer system of sensors for up to 7 miles is being considered by MDOT for the southbound side of the I-295 project.
More work is being done on the Cobbosseecontee Stream overpass by replacing the soft concrete, paving over the entire bridge and fixing up joints at both ends of the bridge, Smith said. The bridge work includes guardrail replacement on the same corridor between Gardiner and Topsham with plans to repave all the on- and off-ramps.
Total cost of the I-295 roadwork and the bridge work for Routes 125 and 138 is $18.8 million with approximately $17.6 million used for just the pavement side of the costs. Around 80% is from federal funds and 20% comes from state funds.
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