As 2025 draws to a close, it’s clear that the pace of change across the road and infrastructure sector has accelerated faster than ever. Local authorities, councils, and contractors are under increased pressure to do more with less - maintaining ageing networks, meeting rising public expectations, and responding to new regulatory standards.
At the same time, technology has matured to a point where automation, AI, and intelligent data are no longer “nice to have”. They’re becoming essential tools for delivering safe, well maintained roads in a cost effective and future-proof way.
For Route Reports, this has been our most significant year yet. We’ve seen rapid adoption of AI-driven monitoring across the UK and internationally, and we’ve hit several major milestones that underline the growing demand for accurate, real-time infrastructure intelligence.
Here’s a look at what’s changed this year — and what it means for the future of road management.
The Sector Is Evolving: Faster Tech Cycles, Smaller Teams, Bigger Demands
Across highways and transportation departments, one theme came up repeatedly this year: the traditional model of road inspection is no longer sustainable.
Councils are managing:
- Shrinking budgets
- Increasing workloads
- A growing backlog of defects
- Pressure to meet compliance and transparency expectations
- Public scrutiny around road maintenance performance
At the same time, the tech landscape is moving fast. AI models are now capable of identifying defects with greater consistency than manual inspections, while automation removes the need for time-intensive site visits.
Many authorities that once spent weeks surveying their networks are now shifting toward continuous, vehicle-mounted, AI-driven monitoring, gaining data that is:
- More frequent
- More objective
- Safer to collect
- Faster to analyse
- And, importantly, far more scalable
This shift is creating a new standard for how roads are monitored and maintained.
Regulation and Standards Are Pushing Modernisation
One of the biggest developments this year was the rising importance of PAS 2161, the new publicly available specification for automated road condition monitoring.
Local authorities are increasingly positioning PAS 2161 compliance as a core requirement for their future monitoring strategies and Route Reports is proud to have received PAS 2161 accreditation this year.
This has helped to build confidence within the sector that automated, AI-powered monitoring is not only accurate and scalable, but also officially validated through a rigorous standard.
The Expanding Role of Data: From “Surveying” to Full Network Intelligence
Road management teams are moving away from isolated surveys and toward continuous datasets that provide:
- Trend analysis
- Predictive maintenance planning
- Evidence-based budget allocation
- More transparent reporting
This year, many councils expressed a shared ambition: to stop firefighting and start planning proactively. With more authorities adopting Route Reports and other new technologies, the shift from reactive to data-driven decision-making is becoming both achievable and practical.
Route Reports: Key Milestones of the Year
While the industry has evolved rapidly, Route Reports has grown alongside it, expanding our technology, our impact, and our global footprint. Here are a few key milestones that stand out in 2025…
✔ PAS 2161 Accreditation
- A major achievement that validates the accuracy and robustness of our automated road condition monitoring.
✔ 52,000+ km of Road Networks Continuously Surveyed
- A huge increase in data capture, highlighting the scale at which councils are now adopting continuous, automated monitoring.
✔ 72 Million Images of UK Roads Collected By Our Customers
- This dataset is powering deeper insights, smarter automation, and ever-improving AI models.
✔ Our First Airport Deployment
- Marking a new chapter in infrastructure monitoring by applying our technology to complex, safety-critical environments beyond roads.
✔ US Expansion: New Cities and Counties Onboard
- With deployments in Milwaukee, Tampa, and more regions across the United States, Route Reports is now helping international teams modernise their infrastructure management.
What This Means for 2026 and Beyond
If 2025 was the year when automated monitoring gained traction, 2026 will be the year it becomes the default.
Local authorities are already planning for:
- Larger-scale deployments
- PAS 2161-aligned technology rollouts
- Integrated decision-making platforms
- Full automation of network-wide monitoring
For many councils, the question is no longer...
“Should we use AI?” It’s “How fast can we deploy this to improve safety, efficiency, and outcomes for road users?”
At Route Reports, our focus in 2026 is simple to continue delivering the most accurate, scalable, and actionable road intelligence in the industry.
With expanding datasets, strengthened standards, and growing international adoption, the future of road monitoring is clearer than ever, and we’re proud to be leading that transformation.
Thank You
To every council, contractor, partner, and collaborator who has joined us this year - thank you. Your commitment to innovation is reshaping the future of infrastructure. Here’s to an even more connected, data-driven, and efficient year ahead.
Work With Us
Want to find out more about Route Reports and see it in action?
Contact us today to arrange a one to one with one of our team, or view the live demo now.
