Data, Not Concrete: How States Are Fixing Roads and Saving Lives

BELLEVUE, WA – January 13, 2026 – As transportation officials grapple with aging infrastructure, rising traffic fatalities, and tightening budgets, a quiet revolution is unfolding on America’s highways. Instead of relying solely on costly new pavement and bridges, states are turning to a more abstract, yet powerful, tool: data. In states like Pennsylvania and Ohio, partnerships with transportation analytics firms are demonstrating that digital infrastructure can yield life-saving results and massive returns on investment, a success story taking center stage at this week's Transportation Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

At the forefront of this shift is INRIX, a company specializing in transforming vast streams of data from connected vehicles and mobile devices into actionable intelligence. By collaborating with state Departments of Transportation (DOTs), the company is providing the insights needed to make roads safer and more efficient without breaking ground on multi-billion dollar construction projects.

The Digital Blueprint for Safer Roads

Nowhere are the benefits of this data-driven approach more apparent than in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has leveraged real-time traffic data to proactively prevent crashes before they happen. By using analytics to identify sudden and dangerous traffic slowdowns, the agency can automatically trigger warnings on digital message signs, alerting drivers to hazards ahead.

This initiative, known as the Virtual Queue Protection Corridors (VQPC) program, has produced staggering safety improvements. According to verified reports, the data-driven solution has led to an 11% reduction in overall crashes within the targeted corridors. The impact on the most severe accidents is even more dramatic, with a remarkable 46% reduction in fatal truck crashes and a 13% drop in rear-end collisions involving trucks. These are not just statistics; they represent lives saved and families kept whole.

The economic impact is equally impressive. PennDOT’s program has generated an estimated $55.6 million in savings for drivers, a figure derived from the societal costs of crashes, including emergency response, property damage, and medical expenses. This demonstrates a powerful proof-of-concept: strategic investments in technology can deliver life-saving benefits and tangible economic value, all while maximizing the capacity of existing roadways.

A Partnership Model Yielding High Returns

Across the border in Ohio, the state's DOT has embraced a similar philosophy, integrating data analytics into nearly every facet of its operations to achieve remarkable efficiency and a stunning return on investment. The Ohio DOT’s partnership with INRIX has been instrumental in justifying and prioritizing its transportation projects, moving from instinct-based decisions to data-backed strategy.

One of the most compelling outcomes is in traffic signal optimization. By using historical and real-time mobility data to analyze traffic flow, the agency identified corridors where retiming signals could have the greatest impact. The results were profound, yielding an estimated 40:1 benefit-to-cost ratio on these targeted projects. For every dollar spent on data and analysis, the state generated forty dollars in benefits through reduced congestion, lower fuel consumption, and saved time for commuters and freight haulers.

This data-centric approach extends beyond managing rush hour traffic. Ohio has also applied these insights to its winter maintenance operations, a critical function in the Midwest. By analyzing road conditions and traffic patterns, the DOT has been able to optimize its deployment of salt trucks and plows, achieving a 99.3% on-time winter road recovery rate. This ensures that commerce continues to flow and drivers can travel safely even in the harshest conditions. “INRIX is committed to helping transportation agencies improve safety and reliability through data-driven insights and technology,” said Bryan Mistele, CEO of INRIX, in a statement. “We are pleased to partner with these great customers to realize performance-based outcomes that save lives and improve mobility.”

From Raw Data to Actionable Intelligence

The successes in Pennsylvania and Ohio are built on a foundation of sophisticated technology that translates billions of anonymous data points into a clear picture of what is happening on the roads. Using machine learning and artificial intelligence, companies like INRIX process location data from connected cars, commercial vehicle fleets, and mobile applications. This allows them to generate precise, real-time metrics on traffic speed, travel times, and congestion patterns.

This capability is fueling the development of specialized tools like Signal Analytics, a product INRIX is showcasing at the TRB conference. This solution provides transportation agencies a network-wide view of traffic signal performance, moving beyond the traditional method of analyzing one intersection at a time. It allows engineers to see how signals interact, identify systemic bottlenecks, and measure the before-and-after impact of timing adjustments.

The market for these services is increasingly competitive, featuring major players like HERE Technologies and TomTom, alongside specialized analytics firms such as StreetLight Data. In some cases, these firms work in concert; Ohio DOT, for example, has reportedly used StreetLight’s platform to further analyze data provided by INRIX. This competitive and sometimes collaborative ecosystem is accelerating innovation, providing public agencies with more powerful and accessible tools than ever before.

A Shift from Concrete to Code

This growing reliance on data marks a fundamental paradigm shift in transportation management. For decades, the primary solution to congestion was to build more—more lanes, more highways, more interchanges. Today, with limited space and funds, the focus is shifting to operating the existing system smarter. This move is supported by federal initiatives like the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which allocates significant funding for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) that improve efficiency and safety.

By leveraging analytics, agencies can squeeze more capacity out of their current infrastructure, delaying or even eliminating the need for disruptive and expensive physical expansion. This digital-first approach not only saves taxpayer money but also contributes to environmental goals by reducing traffic idling and the associated emissions.

The partnerships between state DOTs and private technology firms serve as a blueprint for the future of urban mobility. As more vehicles become connected and data sources proliferate, the ability to analyze and act on this information will become the single most important factor in creating transportation networks that are safer, more efficient, and more resilient for generations to come.