Highways Awards 2026: Celebrating innovation and technology across the highways industry
The UK highways industry will come together in London this month for the Highways Awards 2026, celebrating the people, projects and organisations helping to shape the future of the sector.
Taking place on 23 September 2026 at Park Plaza, Westminster Bridge, London, the Highways Awards are an important date in the industry calendar, recognising achievements across highways, road safety, technology, sustainability and operations.
At ConeRQ, we always keep a close eye on the major milestones shaping our industry. The event provides a good opportunity to look at some of the developments taking place across the highways industry and the growing role that highways technology is playing in modern operations.
Recognising innovation across the highways industry
The highways sector is changing rapidly. New technology, changing working practices and an increased focus on safety and sustainability are all influencing how roads and infrastructure are managed.
The Highways Awards recognise achievements across a wide range of areas, including Best Use of New Technology, Digital Transformation and AI, Road Safety Scheme of the Year, Sustainability Innovation of the Year, Product of the Year and Highways Partnership of the Year.
The finalists for this year's awards demonstrate the variety of ways that organisations are using innovation to improve highways operations.
From smart lighting and adaptive traffic signals to digital traffic management and AI-powered solutions, highways technology is increasingly being used to make roads safer, operations more efficient and decision-making more informed.
The growing role of highways technology
Technology has become an increasingly important part of the modern highways industry.
Organisations responsible for roads and infrastructure have access to more data and digital tools than ever before. The challenge is making effective use of that information while ensuring that teams on the ground have the tools they need to do their jobs efficiently.
The Digital Transformation and AI category at this year's Highways Awards highlights several examples of this shift, including the use of AI video intelligence, digital twins, real-time data and AI-powered decision-making.
These technologies can help highways organisations identify issues more quickly, understand what is happening on the network and make better-informed operational decisions.
At the same time, more practical digital solutions are helping field teams manage everyday tasks, from job allocation and scheduling through to reporting, compliance and communication.
How traffic management software can support modern operations
As highways operations become more complex, traffic management software is becoming an increasingly useful tool for organisations managing teams, jobs and projects in the field.
Instead of relying on spreadsheets, paperwork, phone calls and disconnected systems, traffic management software can bring different parts of an operation together in one place.
Depending on the system, this can include:
Job management – create, allocate and track jobs from one central system.
Scheduling – manage upcoming work and allocate jobs to the right operatives.
Mobile working – give field teams access to job information from their mobile devices.
Digital forms – replace paper-based forms with configurable digital workflows.
Photos and reporting – capture evidence and produce reports directly from the field.
Compliance management – keep important records and documentation organised.
Timesheets – record working hours and link them to jobs.
Integrations – connect traffic management software with other business systems to reduce duplicate data entry.
For traffic management and highways companies, connecting these processes can make a significant difference to day-to-day efficiency.
Safety and sustainability remain key priorities
Technology is only one part of the picture. Safety and sustainability continue to be major priorities across the highways industry.
The Road Safety Scheme of the Year category recognises projects designed to improve safety for road users, while the Sustainability Innovation of the Year category highlights initiatives aimed at reducing environmental impact.
This combination of safety, sustainability and technology reflects some of the biggest challenges facing the sector.
Highways organisations need to maintain and improve essential infrastructure while managing costs, reducing carbon emissions and keeping both road users and workers safe.
Digital technology can support these goals by helping organisations make better use of resources, improve communication and create clearer records of work.
Celebrating the people behind the highways industry
The Highways Awards also recognise the people working behind the scenes to deliver improvements across the sector.
Categories including Apprentice of the Year, Operational Team of the Year, Project Team of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Award highlight the contribution of individuals and teams across the highways industry.
It's an important reminder that while technology is transforming the way the sector operates, successful projects still depend on the people planning, delivering and maintaining highways infrastructure.
Looking ahead for the highways industry
Looking at this year's Highways Awards finalists, it's clear that highways technology and digital transformation are going to continue playing an important role in the future of the sector.
AI, real-time data, digital systems and connected software are already changing how highways organisations manage their operations. For traffic management companies and other businesses with mobile teams, traffic management software can also help bring everyday processes together and reduce some of the administrative work involved in managing jobs in the field.
Events such as the Highways Awards provide a useful opportunity to recognise these developments and celebrate the organisations and individuals helping to move the industry forward.
Good luck to all the finalists at the Highways Awards 2026!
