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    Conestoga High School Wins 2026 PennDOT ‘Innovations Challenge’

    Team submission included AI-driven construction scheduling, ‘safety forecasts’ 

    May 01, 2026

    Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) selected a team of students from Conestoga High School in Berwyn, Chester County as the statewide winner for the 2026 Innovations Challenge. Mentored by Karen Mull, a teacher at Conestoga High School, team members included Miya Cao, Daniel Loza, and Prranit Arora.

    Each spring, Pennsylvania travelers encounter work zones as PennDOT and its industry partners are busy improving the 40,000 miles of highway and 25,000 bridges in its care. However, for crews working alongside traffic, this presents a unique safety challenge.

    For this year’s Innovations Challenge, students were asked to develop a concept for the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in work zones to dramatically improve safety for work crews and drivers. Students outlined a plan for how PennDOT can use smarter systems to prevent accidents and protect those who are working to build a better Pennsylvania. Concepts also took into consideration cost-benefit information and statewide deployment, as well as public outreach. 

    “Every day, crews are out of their vehicles working on our highways and bridges, one of the most dangerous places in our communities for workers,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. “Safety is the most critical aspect of maintenance and construction, for travelers and work crews. I am encouraged to see young people harnessing new technology to find ways to improve safety in our work zones.”

    The winning team’s proposal was the Safe Window Scheduling System, an AI machine learning model to identify lower-risk time windows for work zone activity based on weather, weekday, time, and roadway classification. The system created by the students produces 72-hour safety forecasts to guide construction scheduling. By keeping workers out of work zones during higher-risk periods, PennDOT could save lives and costs across Pennsylvania.

    Eight regional winners were selected earlier this year and invited to Harrisburg to present their solutions to a panel of judges to determine the statewide winner. The judging aligned with PennDOT’s annual Work Zone Safety Awareness Week event, during which students heard firsthand accounts of work zone close calls from PennDOT and PA Turnpike employees. 

    The following organizations provided a combined total of $6,000 to the statewide winning team:

    For complete Innovations Challenge details, visit the Innovations Challenge page on PennDOT’s website.

    Drivers can check conditions on major roadways by visiting 511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information, and access to more than 1,200 traffic cameras. 511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional X alerts.

    Find PennDOT news on X, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

    MEDIA CONTACT: Zachary Appleby, zappleby@pa.gov or 717-783-8800 

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