City of Vaughan Receives Municipal Innovation Award for AI-Based Approach to Managing Local Roads

Municiaplinfonet.com
Aug. 25, 2023

The Peter J. Marshall Innovation Award Jury presented its highest award to The City of Vaughan for its AI-based Road Patrol Manager project. The Plaque Award was presented to Zoran Postic, Deputy City Manager, Public Works, at the 2023 AMO Conference in London, Ontario.

The City's Road Patrol Manager relies on artificial intelligence to quickly find road problems like potholes or cracks. Quick detection means faster repairs, extending the life of local road infrastructure and freeing up resources to be used elsewhere.

Before launching the Road Patrol Manager, finding road problems was a manual, multi-step process. A road patrol driver would scan the road for issues, pull over and record the problem, create a work order, and then submit it to the City's work order system. Using AI, the Road Patrol Manager automatically scans for deficiencies and sends the information, including a photo of the problem, to the City's customer service team to create a work order. This allows the City to monitor more of its road network without adding resources, providing value for Vaughan's residents.

AI technology has greatly improved the detection of many types of road issues. It can detect 10 times more signs obstructed by branches compared to manual patrols. Since launching the Road Patrol Manager, road crack detection has increased by 300%, and graffiti detection is up by almost 500%.

"We are honoured to be recognized for our innovative use of AI and Smart City planning as part of the City's Road Patrol Manager project," says Steven Del Duca, Mayor of The City of Vaughan. "Using artificial intelligence to find things like potholes saves time and resources and will help our local infrastructure last longer. Vaughan's Road Patrol Manager has the potential to serve as a template for municipalities across the country. I couldn't be prouder of staff for demonstrating our City's commitment to creating a culture of innovation."

Several municipalities have already reached out to The City of Vaughan to learn about the Road Patrol Manager. Vaughan is also exploring other areas to apply the technology. Trials are now underway for sidewalks, which will save on inspection costs and provide greater flexibility, and in parks to monitor playground equipment.

The P.J. Marshall Award is an annual competitive process to acknowledge municipalities who have had creativity and success in implementing new, innovative ways of serving the public. It is sponsored by AMO, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks & Treasurers of Ontario, the Canadian Council for Public Private Partnerships, the Municipal Finance Officers' Association, and the Ontario Municipal Administrators' Association.

In addition to the City of Vaughan, two other municipalities received plaque awards. the Municipality of Middlesex Centre for its transition to a fully automated, completely paperless e-permitting system for building services, and the City of Markham for its innovative approach to the 2022 Markham Municipal Election, including online voting and voter registration.

AMO works to make municipal governments stronger and more effective. Through AMO, Ontario's 444 municipalities work together to achieve shared goals and meet common challenges.