The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) has awarded a $1.4M grant to a team of four researchers who will work to improve transportation safety and efficiency in Indiana.
Led by Soowon Chang, an assistant professor in the School of Construction Management Technology, the team’s three-year project will enhance simulator-based driver training and help INDOT make informed decisions about integrating and expanding the use of simulators for improving driver safety, operational efficiency, and overall performance. The simulators are used for Indiana’s transportation workforce, including fleet drivers, snowplow drivers, and drivers pursuing commercial driver licenses.
“Our team initiated this project to build a more effective and data-informed simulator training framework that serves both INDOT’s operational needs and broader public safety goals,” Chang said.
The multifaceted study will have five parts:
- Refining simulator scenarios tailored to Indiana’s unique conditions and drivers’ skill levels
- Developing tutorials for driving simulators
- Assessing the impacts of simulator-based training
- Identifying and quantifying resources saved through driving simulator programs
- Developing strategies for statewide use of simulator resources
The concept for this project emerged through ongoing collaboration between Purdue University researchers and the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT), particularly in response to operational challenges identified in previous studies. Chang says these efforts revealed promising outcomes from the pilot integration of driving simulators, including increased trainee engagement, confidence, and skills acquisition. They also discovered gaps in scenario relevance, trainer preparedness, and scalable resource utilization across districts.
“This work also aligns with our department’s focus on workforce development, applied research, and technology-driven solutions in transportation,” Chang said. “In addition, this project exemplifies the land-grant mission by applying research to real-world infrastructure and workforce challenges. Through this work, Purdue reinforces its leadership in simulation-based training, human factors research, and intelligent infrastructure systems, while contributing to the long-term capability and resilience of Indiana’s transportation workforce.”
The team also includes co-principal investigators Yunfeng Chen and Jiansong Zhang, both associate professors in Purdue’s School of Construction Management Technology, and Luciana Debs, an assistant professor from Texas State University’s Department of Engineering Technology. The project started on July 1, 2025, and will continue through July 31, 2028.
Chang has also worked with INDOT for the two other projects, SPR 4836 and SPR 4862, which studied best practices for implementing driving simulators and applying solar power systems in Indiana’s right of way (ROW) and INDOT-owned facilities, respectively.
