Automated system ensures fast, safe vehicle permitting and routing in the Sooner State

In recent years, the number of commercial trucks requesting oversize/overweight (OS/OW) routes and permits in Oklahoma had grown to more than 200,000 per year — averaging 800 permits per weekday. With limited resources, the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (OK DPS) found it challenging to process permit requests in a timely manner. Truckers were forced to wait days to receive permits and approved routes.

The departments knew this process was damaging from an economic standpoint, but also to public safety, as it encouraged some truckers to circumvent the process and drive without permits along unsafe routes. State lawmakers met with department leaders and determined improving the routing and permitting process for OS/OW vehicles was a key issue to keep the state’s roads safe and support commercial trucking.

Working with Hexagon Safety & Infrastructure, the departments deployed OKiePROS, an automated permitting and routing system based on Hexagon’s transportation software. The system went live in November 2011 and has been updated with new enhancements each year.

With the permitting application, carriers can request, pay for and receive a permit online. The routing application, which is integrated with Google maps, automatically generates safe travel routes and shares temporary changes in road conditions in real time.

Additionally, a restriction management application gives authorized staff the ability to enter route notifications and temporary restrictions, such as accidents and lane closures, which reduce a road’s capacity for handling oversize/overweight vehicles.

State revenue has increased by $8 million per year thanks to the system, which offers 24/7 access. The number of permits issued has increased to approximately 250,000 per year, while permit processing time has decreased to less than 10 minutes. Notably, the state has experienced no bridge strikes (where a vehicle crashes into a bridge) on approved routes since the system’s implementation.

“With the help of Hexagon, we have successfully implemented a system with amazing return on investment,” Branford Dodd, director of the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety says. “That means increased revenue generation, instantaneous auto-permitting and, most importantly, ensuring the safety of people and infrastructure.”

Click here to learn more about Hexagon Safety & Infrastructure.

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