Overview
The National Operations Center of Excellence (NOCoE) convened the 2026 Digital Infrastructure Summit to examine how transportation agencies can expand digital infrastructure deployments and sustain the services they provide. Building on the December 2025 Digital Infrastructure Peer Exchange, the two-day summit brought together public agencies, national associations, researchers, and industry representatives to share deployment experience and identify remaining barriers. Transportation Systems Management and Operations (TSMO) provided the operational context for the discussion, connecting technology investments to safety, mobility, and reliable movement of people and goods.
Digital infrastructure includes the technologies and systems used to collect, exchange, and apply transportation information. Sensors, communications networks, software, and connected devices support services such as work-zone notifications, wrong-way detection, traffic-signal operations, freight information, and more. Throughout the two days, data accuracy and quality were imperative to capturing the full value of digital infrastructure technologies in the TSMO environment. For example, a published work-zone feed must reflect actual field conditions and reach the receiving application before it can help a driver respond to a closure.
Industry leaders from across sectors illustrated how they deploy digital infrastructure and connect it to existing infrastructure and services, such as existing cameras, communications networks, traffic management systems, and commercially available vehicle data. However, implementation often requires updates to contracts, reporting practices, software connections, and staff training modules. Panelists and participants reiterated that once these connections are established, gaps may remain, and testing is required to establish whether the services are working as intended.
Across both days, interoperability was at the forefront of the discussions. Agencies and their partners need to agree on the information being exchanged, its format, and the accuracy and timeliness required for the application. “Real-time” data needs to be defined in contracts and is not needed for every data transfer, service, or application. A federated approach would allow agencies to retain their systems while sharing selected information through common interfaces. Many relevant standards already exist, but implementation choices and insufficient testing can prevent consistent exchange. Practical implementation guidance, validation, and coordination with receiving organizations can help distinguish these problems from gaps that require updates to standards, or the development of new standards.
The benefits of partnerships were on full display across the two days. Executive-level partnerships with multiple states demonstrated that cross-jurisdictional coordination can support day-to-day operations, especially when major events occur, planned or unplanned. These partnerships leverage industry and local connections, bringing together local governments, metropolitan planning organizations, transit operators, emergency services, highway patrol, freight partners, and more. The TSMO environment and its digital infrastructure are embedded in local-level coordination efforts that State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) cannot accomplish alone. Organizations must prioritize continuity of these relationships through staff and leadership changes. Workforce development remains a critical aspect of scaled deployment of digital infrastructure. Staff need to be trained not just in the technology with data management, cybersecurity, and information technologies, but also in contracting. Funding for digital infrastructure is structurally different with data subscriptions, and agencies need to be strategic about their revenue streams to support continued advancements in digital infrastructure to support operations.
The closing discussion revisited the 2025 findings and identified practical needs for further work: durable governance arrangements, phased deployment, better use of existing data, and a planned transition from legacy equipment. Taken together, the summit examples show that expanding digital infrastructure requires agencies to connect deployment decisions with the services they can operate and maintain.