Labor shortages threaten road safety in North America

U.S. and Canadian public sector industries, participating in transport and construction, are seeing critical projects hindered due to labor shortages. The lack of skilled workers threatens timely project completion and daily road-safety measures.

Labor shortages in the U.S.

The U.S. construction industry is experiencing gradual impacts. With the industry’s unemployment rate averaging 4.6% and job openings remaining historically high at 377,000 per month, 88% of construction firms report difficulty finding workers ^1,2. This risks a delay in project timelines, which can directly affect road repairs and importantly—motorist safety. American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) graded U.S. road conditions with a “D” indicating that conditions are in steady decline in infrastructure quality, exacerbated by these labor gaps ³.

Labor shortages in Canada

The situation is equally concerning north of the border. In Canada—specifically Ontario—40% of organizations private and public report labor shortages in construction and transportation ⁴. There are one million vacant jobs in 2022 and 59% of employers struggled to find qualified workers⁵. This pressure forces municipalities to seek innovative solutions to meet operational standards.

 Driving outcomes with A.I.

Municipalities are turning to A.I. technology as a solution. A.I. mimics human thinking to process large amounts of data and solve problems with limited human help thus directly addressing labor shortages. Adopting A.I. technology in municipal operations has been shown to offer benefits such as cost-savings of up to 30%, faster response times and improved safety outcomes⁶. Currently 35% of construction companies worldwide are using A.I. to improve project management efficiency and municipalities are increasingly turning to it for higher accuracy and faster turnaround times ⁷ . Technologies like those offered by iris are the forefront of this transformation, providing municipalities with A.I.- driven tools to detect defects like potholes, cracks and damaged assets such as traffic signs and streetlights.

Results from municipalities

A.I. yielded significant results for three regions in North America. The City of Greeley in the state of Colorado was able to reallocate their road staff to other needed tasks because they automated their road patrol operation. The Public Works team was able to reduce the number of staff required for road patrols and additionally recorded a drop in resident service calls. This helps them measure the quality of their resident’s experience and service levels, along with how responsive they are to road defects.

Vaughan and Grey County in Ontario have seen remarkable improvements: 25% increase in compliance reporting currently and a 50% reduction in pavement inspection time, respectively.

A.I. technology presents a promising avenue to enhance efficiency and reduce the strain on limited resources.

Automate road safety, book a DEMO today

1. Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC). (2024). Construction workforce shortage tops half a million. Retrieved from ABC News Releases.
2. (n.d.). Labor shortage in construction. Retrieved from ConstructConnect Blog.
3. American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). (2021). 2021 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure: Grades reveal widening investment gap. Retrieved from ASCE Publications and News.
4. Ontario Chamber of Commerce. (2024). 2024 Ontario Economic Report. Retrieved from Ontario Chamber of Commerce.
5. Statistics Canada. (n.d.). Retrieved from Statistics Canada.
6. McKinsey Global Institute. (n.d.). Help wanted: The long-term labor tightening trend by country. Retrieved from McKinsey & Company.
7. (n.d.). A.I. in the construction industry statistics. Retrieved from WorldMetrics.