RALEIGH – The N.C. Department of Transportation is the recent winner of two national awards for innovation.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials presented two innovation awards to the department this week at its spring meeting in Georgia. The awards earned are for an AI safety tool, which is a pilot program NCDOT initiated, and for the world’s first superstreet interchange, located in Lexington.
Employees Embrace AI Safety Tool
The AI tool, called FYLD (pronounced "field"), was introduced to several NCDOT employees in 2025 as a pilot program to enhance safety. Typically, employees view a job site with their eyes and then write down any hazards with pen and paper. Now, with an iPad, employees take a picture of short video and upload it to the app. Within seconds, the tool lists multiple hazards crews need to be aware of.
“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.
Since the tool was implemented, Barfield said he has seen a spike in the number of employees reporting power lines as a hazard.
“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,” Barfield added.
More employees will be testing out the tool in 2026.
World’s First Superstreet Interchange
The department’s Highway Division 9 and its Transportation Mobility and Safety Division are taking home an innovation award for their design and construction of the world’s first superstreet interchange at Interstate 85 and U.S. 64 in Lexington.
The interchange opened in fall 2024 and serves a key corridor carrying about 13,000 vehicles per day. The location was selected for improvement due to a longstanding pattern of crashes and congestion at the former diamond interchange, where stopcontrolled ramp terminals led to frequent angle crashes and lengthy delays.
“The department’s number one priority is safety, and we recognized there was a high crash rate at both of these offramps,” Division 9 Engineer John Rhyne said.
The superstreet design, also known as a reduced conflict intersection, eliminates direct left turns from the offramps. Drivers are instead directed to turn right and make a controlled Uturn at designated crossovers, reducing conflict points and improving traffic flow.
Early results show the project has delivered safety benefits well beyond expectations. While the anticipated crash reduction was 20%, total crashes are down 40% since opening. Angle crashes have been eliminated entirely, dropping from 12 per year to zero. Motorists are also experiencing shorter travel times through interchange.
“This interchange here proves that given time and research, NCDOT can come up with innovative products for the public,” Rhyne said.