We are living in an information age, in which the emergence of high-performance computing, data analysis, mobile communications and intelligent systems are presenting transportation with an opportunity to really modernise and to reap the rewards of greater automation.

Users of our transport network have certain expectation as to how we should use innovation to improve network operations, to complete repairs faster and understand the impact we are having on the health of our planet.

Transport is often viewed as being behind the curve when it comes to digital services options. Are we making the right level of progress to deliver solutions?

These themes were discussed at a recent CIHT roundtable, where a group of young professionals shared their perspectives on the barriers to innovation that exist in highways and transportation, and what needs to happen to create the right environment for innovation to thrive:

How can we remove the barriers to innovation?

The group highlighted the need for leadership to overcome barriers to innovation by creating a culture and working environment where new ways of doing things is not only encouraged, but the risk of failure accepted.

Some reported however that slim profit margins on some project, created a risk averse environment that does not encourage creativity.

The sector needs to be better at sharing and showcasing new and effective innovation, that provide supporting evidence, that will in turn remove the risk considered by many as a reason not to innovate.

I too often see our young engineers acting in a way they think we want them to. I understand why, but I would much rather they spoke from the heart, and were passionate when expressing themselves. They have such great ideas and shouldn’t be afraid of telling us what they are.

Dr Matt Peck, Atkins

What would it take for innovation to thrive?

Having a big problem to solve that impacts negatively on society such as air quality or environment, serves to drive momentum and the need for innovation. Demand by public for our road networks will continue to grow. We cannot expand our road networks endlessly: we need to find smarter ways of using our existing infrastructure.

I firmly believe the proverb that ‘necessity is the mother of invention’. There is always a better way of doing things. As our ability to deliver large scale changes to existing infrastructure reduces for many reasons such as climate change, cost and space, we need to get better at getting the most out of existing assets. I think this is where technology and innovation is key to future improvements in the industry and certainly where we need to be in the future.

Josh McLaren, Atkins

Making changes to the network and how we travel, will also require creating public awareness and understanding at early stage of project. This in turn, will result in positive public perception, enthusiasm, and support for innovation. A recent public backlash against smart motorways, demonstrates what can happen when the public are not kept fully informed.

Better access to data, enabling better insight through analysis was also seen by the group as important. From a local authority perspective, access to a wider pool of data sets, would have profound and beneficial impacts on people in the community.

Access to good information is crucial to enable innovation. In the past there’s been a mismatch between the data private companies such as Google, Strava and Uber have been able to collect versus public sector organisations. Greater access to more information, will serve to support innovation and behavioural challenges in public sector.

Nicola Laird, Aberdeen City Council & Chair of CIHT’s Young Professionals Network

From a skills perspective it was agreed that there is a need for a more diverse skillset within the industry, for innovation to thrive. The transportation sector is behind the curve when it comes to capability. Disciplines relating to data analytics and science, are needed to deliver smarter and more innovative infrastructure and services. We are moving to a digital service delivery model, and the skills to support that are different to traditional engineering skills. Digital technologies will revolutionise the engineering industry, leading to better outcomes and performance across the entire life cycle of assets. We need to cast our net wider for who we bring into the industry.

We are looking at the skills shortage but perhaps in the wrong place. We shouldn’t just recruit more people to become engineers but look to hire from different backgrounds with different skills sets - not just focus on engineering and transport planning degrees alone.

Emily See, Yotta

What would ‘good’ look like?

One example of good innovation discussed was the DfT Incentive Fund, designed to drive innovative changes at local authority level, by tying funding to requirements for certain behaviours. Although the scheme was mandatory for most, the lack of auditing by the department meant that the sector reverted quickly back to old behaviours. It was agreed that there should be incentives in place to drive this behaviour, but it has to be accompanied by auditing to ensure compliance.

We need to remove the fear of failure and expectation that any innovation needs to be perfect from the get-go, through encouraging trial-and-error and the freedom to experiment whilst maintaining high safety standards within the industry. Amazon and Google create innovative cultures by placing an expectation on their employees to challenge traditional ways of thinking.

Lucy Nightingale, Kier

A balance between private sector needs for retaining their competitive edge, and open and shared innovation also needs to be found. Procurement contracts need to be structured in such a way that encourages innovation, and in some cases shares the risk of adopting innovation.

Regulations around client ownership of intellectual property where foreground Intellectual Property assets produced during a project, also need to be considered. Requests by clients to retain any related background Intellectual Property owned by the contracted company, can be off-putting for small and medium sized enterprises.

Regulations need to be able to keep up with technology in private sector companies, which is often miles ahead. We need to make sure that the public and private sector talk to each other about what is it we need and how do we roll it out?

Rahul Modhvadia, WSP

Finally, we need to remember that innovation does not mean invention, and that many solutions to some of the major problems we are facing, such as climate change, are already out there. We need to be better at collaborating openly, between companies and with the public, and not be afraid to take risks and try new solutions.

This Guest Blog is proudly sponsored by Atkins

They will be continuing the conversation at the upcoming CIHT Young Professionals Conference 2021.