This project involved the creation of a system for safely removing debris from the roadway while protecting Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission employees from being struck by vehicles while working on the roadway. While the agency has had no fatalities while clearing roadway debris, the agency's Risk Management Group determined a high correlation between strain and sprain injuries and the work of removing debris such as dragging deer carcasses or tires.

Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (Commission) employees clear more than 7,000 roadway obstructions each year across the 565-mile roadway system. To remove roadway debris, Commission employees must park their vehicle and walk or run across the roadway to retrieve these items. In these situations, employees run the risk of being struck by oncoming vehicles and suffering injuries from removing debris.

To avoid these safety and health risks, the Commission collaborated with J-Tech Industries to develop LaneBlade, a roadway debris-clearing system that solves the problem of having employees remove roadway debris by hand while dodging heavy traffic. After several years in pilot phase, in 2022, the Commission deployed 12 state-of-the-art LaneBlade road debris removal systems, and another 12 were purchased in 2023.  

View a demo of the LaneBlade: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=813185053005902