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National transportation group selects ITD innovation program
as prototype for other states

A national transportation group recently selected the Idaho Transportation Department’s employee-driven innovation program for its potential use by other states wanting to emulate Idaho’s success.

The Innovation Initiative committee of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) will work with ITD to showcase the innovation to other state DOTs.

AASHTO called ITD's program a “best-in-class process” in a letter just before Christmas announcing their interest in the program.

Rather than rely on the brainpower of a select group of leadership-level people, ITD harnesses the creativity of all 1,600 employees statewide. These innovations create a more efficient ITD and save significant money for taxpayers.

ITD’s innovation program has so far produced:
•   567 innovations
•   $2.2 million in savings and efficiencies
•   75,000 employee and contractor hours saved
•   190 customer-service improvements

“This spotlight belongs to the employees who share ideas through ‘Innovate ITD!’,” ITD Chief Administrative Officer Charlene McArthur said. “By sharing their ideas and successes, they help others use best practices, which multiplies the impact and helps us tally the results. ”

“Through the Innovate ITD platform, employees focus continuous improvement toward advancing ITD’s mission — Your Safety, Your Mobility and Your Economic Opportunity,” she added.

This marks the second year in a row that an ITD effort was selected in AASHTO’s nationwide search. In 2015, a bridge-repair innovation in north-central Idaho was selected for the program.