Road Safety January 26, 2026

AI Is Our Tool, Not Our Driver: Shaping AI for Safer Roads

We have reached a point where it is clear we are destined to live alongside Artificial Intelligence. This isn’t just a trend; it is a reality we are all navigating together. From our personal lives to the way we manage national infrastructure, AI is becoming a quiet but constant partner.

As we move forward, I believe we must develop deeper insights into what this partnership actually means. There is often a sense of trepidation — a fear that AI might evolve beyond our understanding. But perhaps we can find common ground in a fundamental truth: AI is restricted to the rules and principles of this universe. It is bound by the same laws of physics and logic that we are. At Dareesoft, we try to view AI not as a sentient replacement for human decision-making, but as a sophisticated tool — one designed to support our perception and help us prioritize what matters most: our collective safety on the road.

The Physical Arena: Why Road Management is Reaching a Breaking Point

In my experience, there is no place where these “universal rules” are more demanding than on our global road networks. We often take the asphalt beneath us for granted, but maintaining these assets is a monumental task that is increasingly stretching our traditional methods to their limits.

1. The Challenges We Share

Those of us in the industry know that managing infrastructure today is a constant battle:

• The Scale: With millions of miles of road, manual inspection feels like an impossible race against time.
• Resource Realities: We are all working with tightening budgets and a shrinking pool of specialized expertise.
• Climate Pressures: Extreme weather is changing how materials behave, often faster than our maintenance cycles can adapt.
• Modern Demands: Increasing traffic volume and heavy logistics place physical stresses on our roads that we are all working hard to mitigate.
  
   

2. Can We Do Better Together?

Currently, much of our work is reactive. We respond to reports or perform sporadic surveys. While we all do our best with the resources available, we know that by the time a pothole is visible, the structural damage is often deep. We are all looking for ways to move toward a more proactive model.

AI as a Tool, Not a Magic Wand

I want to be very clear: I don’t believe AI is a “magic wand” that will suddenly solve every problem for us. I know that for many engineers, there is a healthy skepticism — and rightfully so. Many are asked to provide automated metrics for every distress in the ASTM D6433 standard, expecting a machine to perfectly replace a human inspector’s eye.

In my view, the true value of AI isn’t in “magic calculations.” It’s in the ability to provide high-quality, standardized datasets at a scale that was previously impossible. It’s about giving us a consistent foundation of data so we can spend less time searching for problems and more time solving them.

The Power of Human Experience

This is where I believe the human element is most vital. AI only serves as an effective tool when seasoned road engineers are the ones guiding it. Data without context is just noise. It is the experience of the engineer that turns data into “Road Insight.” When we take ownership of these new digital tools and apply our years of “on-the-road” wisdom to these big datasets, we aren’t being replaced; we are being empowered. We can use these insights to be more preventive, making our budgets go further and our roads last longe.

The RiaaS Paradigm: A Collaborative Approach

This philosophy is what drives RiaaS (Road Information as a Service). We see it as a bridge between technology and expertise. By using AI to capture data across entire networks in real-time, we provide the evidence that helps engineers make better, more informed decisions.

Final Thoughts: A Shared Path

If AI is the tool, then the human professional remains the architect.

By accepting that AI is bound by the rules of our physical world, we can move past the hype and focus on the practical. At Dareesoft, our hope is that while AI helps us process the data, it is human insight and leadership that continue to drive us toward a safer future. AI isn’t here to take the wheel; it’s here to help us see the road a little more clearly.

#AIBasedRoadAssessment #AIPotholeDetection #AIAsphaltCondition #SmartRoads #RoadSafetyTechnology #InfrastructureAI #AIDrivenMaintenance #Dareesoft

Author: Elizabeth Row (LinkedIn)