Skip to agency navigation
Skip to main content

Official website

of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

    The .gov means it's official.

    Local, state, and federal government websites often end in .gov. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania government websites and email systems use "pennsylvania.gov" or "pa.gov" at the end of the address. Before sharing sensitive or personal information, make sure you're on an official state website. 

    Innovations Challenge

    The PennDOT Innovations Challenge is a statewide competition that challenges teams of students in ninth through 12th grade to use their problem-solving, creative, and strategic-thinking abilities to solve real-world transportation challenges. Regional winners will be selected by PennDOT's Engineering Districts. Those winners will move on to a statewide competition where an overall winner will be selected.

    PennDOT Innovations Challenge Submission Form
    Previous Innovations Challenge Winners

    2025-26 Challenge

    Background: Each spring when the weather improves, Pennsylvanians and travelers in the state anticipate encountering many work zones, as PennDOT and its industry partners are busy improving the 40,000 miles of highway and 25,000 bridges in its care. Highway construction and maintenance is a necessary part of keeping Pennsylvania’s highways safe and reliable, which presents the unique challenge of keeping work crews protected and the travelling public safe in work zones. Work zones include everything from sudden slowdowns to temporary signs and lane changes that road users may unexpectedly encounter on their regular routes.

    Your Challenge:

    Develop a concept for the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in work zones to dramatically improve safety for work crews and road users. Your concept must outline how PennDOT can use smarter systems to prevent accidents and protect those who are working to build a better Pennsylvania. Your concept should also take into consideration cost-benefit information, statewide deployment implications, as well as public outreach. 

    Innovations Challenge Trophies

    Your Award: The statewide winning team will be chosen from among regional winning teams across the state. Each PennDOT regional office's winning team members will receive certificates. The regional winners will be invited to present their innovative solutions to the PennDOT Secretary and a panel of judges, who will determine the statewide winner. The statewide winning team members will receive certificates, and their school will receive a traveling trophy and permanent trophy engraved with the school's name. 

    In addition, PennDOT is partnering with several organizations to provide a monetary award to the statewide winning team to be announced on this page at a later date. These organizations include:  

    Think you have an innovative solution? Give the PennDOT Innovations Challenge your best effort!

    Project & Submission Guidelines

    Students must work together in teams (minimum of two up to a maximum of four individuals) to develop their innovative solution that addresses the identified challenge. 

    To enter the challenge, teams must complete the 2025-2026 PennDOT Innovations Challenge Submission Form,  which includes attaching a description of no more than 750 words outlining the innovative solution and its benefits. Note: Each team must identify a faculty adviser who will need to submit the form on the team’s behalf. 

    The submissions will be reviewed by regional PennDOT offices, and up to five teams will be invited to present their solutions to a team of judges from the PennDOT regional office depending on where their school district is located. Note: If your team is selected as a regional finalist, a PowerPoint presentation (or similar presentation software), consisting of no more than 15 slides must be created. Presentations must be no longer than 15 minutes. In addition, models, diagrams, videos, and other visual aids or supporting materials can be used as part of your presentation to demonstrate your team's innovative solution to the PennDOT regional office judges.  

    Winners will be selected from the PennDOT regional offices; regional winners will advance to the statewide competition, where one statewide winner will be selected. 

    The challenge is open to Pennsylvania high school freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors in public, private or charter schools, and homeschooled students. Note: PennDOT employees and their family members (siblings, children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews) are ineligible to enter.​

    Deadline

    Submissions must be received by PennDOT's Bureau of Strategic Business Operations by 11:59 PM on January 30, 2026.

    Process and Timeline

    1. By January 30, 2026, at 11:59 PM, complete and submit the 2025-2026 PennDOT Innovations Challenge Submission Form to PennDOT's Bureau of Strategic Business Operations.
    2. By February 13, 2026, PennDOT regional offices will review initial submissions, select up to five finalists and invite them to present their innovative solutions to a panel of judges, either in person or virtually. 
    3. By March 20, 2026, PennDOT regional offices will select winners for the statewide judging in April 2026, to present, either in person or virtually, their innovative solutions to the PennDOT Secretary and a panel of judges, who will determine the statewide winner.

    Judging Criteria 

    Effectiveness – 10 points

    • Does the solution holistically address the challenge?
    • Could the solution be used by PennDOT without substantial revisions?
    • Does the solution address a problem that can be solved with tools, techniques and/or technologies that are available today?
    • Can the solution be easily implemented by PennDOT?
    • Does the solution include a plan for statewide deployment and for continued operation and maintenance after implementation (if applicable)? 

    Benefits to the Community – 10 points

    • Does the solution promote work zone safety?
    • Will the solution prevent accidents in work zones?
    • Will the solution increase safety for work crews and road users?
    • Does the solution improve communications between PennDOT and the community and/or take into consideration outreach to secure buy-in from the community?

    Cost-Effectiveness - 10 Points

    • Does the solution identify and effectively address any costs to implement the solution?
    • Is the solution sustainable and cost-effective to maintain in the long-term?

    Innovation – 10 points

    • Does the solution inspire transportation progress?
    • Does the solution introduce an original idea or advanced concept?
    • Does the solution show promise as a catalyst for continued improvement?

    Presentation – 10 points

    • Were the presentation materials submitted completely?
    • Is the solution presented in a captivating manner?
    • Is the solution presented with clarity and forethought?
    • Did the presenters discuss all aspects of the solution from formulation through execution?
    • Did the group members answer questions from the judges completely, logically and personably?
    • Did the brief write-up on the solution contain a clear, complete and well-organized summary of the project?

    ​Contact Information

    For questions or more information, email PennDOT's Bureau of Strategic Business Operations at DOTInnovations@pa.gov. The above project and submission guidelines are also available in PDF format​.