I-Corps: Curve safety assessment solution to help transportation agencies with road curve safety management

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a cost-effective solution to improve roadway curve safety of transportation networks, particularly curve safety assessment and compliance checking of curve warning signage. The proposed solution may help transportation agencies transform the management practices of roadway safety from reactive to proactive to save lives and improve overall roadway safety. The proposed technology may help save time and effort for transportation agencies, and also promote transportation safety equity, especially for local agencies and underrepresented communities that have limited resources to improve their roadway safety. The proposed technology may offer a more cost-effective and efficient alternative that enhances state-of-art practices to help agencies meet federal regulations and avoid potential liabilities from roadway collisions. This I-Corps project is based on the development of technologies to improve the roadway curve safety of transportation networks. The technologies use mobile and Internet of Things data, computer vision and machine learning, and advanced computation models to perform curve safety assessments, inventory and monitor curve warning signage, and evaluate compliance with federal regulations. The proposed technology uses intra-agency crowdsourcing and advanced computation models for curve geometric property extraction and advisory speed determination. The solution also uses global positioning systems (GPS) and imagery data combined with computer vision and deep learning methods for automated curve warning sign detection and compliance analysis. Previous results show the potential for these technologies to significantly improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of safety management practices by enabling routine assessment of curve safety, routinely inventorying existing curve warning signage, and conducting compliance analyses to identify deficiencies and support safety improvement planning. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.