This Week at NCDOT: AI Safety Tool, Distracted Driving Awareness Month, Rockingham Special

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​​RALEIGH – The following are highlights from this week at the N.C. Department of Transportation. The stories below are also featured in NCDOT Now​, the department's weekly newscast. 

AI Safety Tool  

Safety comes first at the N.C. Department of Transportation, and a new AI‑powered tool is helping crews spot hazards faster than ever. 

In mid-2025, select NCDOT employees were introduced to an AI hazard‑detection pilot program using a tool called FYLD, designed to enhance and streamline daily safety checks. Using an iPad, employees can take a picture or short video, upload it to the FYLD app and receive a report within seconds of any hazards it recognizes. 

“This takes our program to a new level. We are the first DOT in the country to do this type of work,” said NCDOT Safety and Risk Management Director Robin Barfield. “Sometimes AI makes people nervous, but what we are trying to do is embrace it, use it to our advantage and, in turn, it makes our job a little bit easier because we are finding things with the AI use that we didn’t anticipate before.”   

More employees are testing out the tool this year.   

Distracted Driving Awareness Month 

April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and NCDOT is reminding drivers to stay alert behind the wheel.  

Distracted driving is a leading cause of vehicle crashes, with texting and cell phone use contributing to the majority of these incidents. Even a quick glance at your phone can pull your attention from changing traffic conditions. 

For your safety and everyone else’s, remember to put your phone away and keep your full attention on the road until you arrive at your destination. 

For additional tips, visit the NCDOT webpage on distracted driving. 

Rockingham Special  

NC By Train is gearing up for a big weekend as NASCAR returns to Rockingham Speedway on April 4.  ​

A special passenger train will run from Raleigh to The Rock, giving fans a convenient, stress‑free ride to the action. 

The “Rockingham Special” will operate this Saturday only, traveling between Raleigh Union Station and Rockingham Speedway with stops in Cary and Southern Pines. 

Train tickets are $25 each way and are still available for purchase on Amtrak’s website.