RURAL shires with many thousands of kilometres of roads in their networks are excited about the potential cost-savings offered by a recent trial of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology that remotely surveyed more than 600km of roads.
Conducted by professional and technical services firm AECOM for McKinlay and Winton shires, the flights were the first by a long-range UAV to monitor road assets beyond the line of sight for non-military purposes, and was hailed as a world first.
At times the 2 metre-long UAV was up to 200km from the base site at Julia Creek and Winton airports as it surveyed road surfaces and bridge conditions.
The latest in 3D mapping technology will be used to process photographic data obtained from the flights, which the designers say will cut the costs and time taken by traditional survey methods.
"Surveys of 200km can take months whereas this can do it in a day," AECOM's associate director James Ramsay said.
"We haven't been able to establish a definitive amount but there's a saving in the time taken to pick up data."
Accuracy of initial data would improve with ground-truthing from 30 to 40mm to under 20mm, but that would come with a premium cost.
"It depends on what you're doing it for," he said. "The information is very accurate if you're just trying to pick up road changes."
He added that the accuracy improved the more a section was flown, meaning that it would give savings for long-term asset management.
McKinlay Shire Mayor Belinda Murphy said the trial could open up a world of opportunity for remote councils such as her own, citing times when roads were flooded and conventional means of assessing damage were not available.
With about 2400km of roads to manage in the shire, Cr Murphy said any new technology that enabled it to better manage, improve and provide value for money would be a step forward.
"Council looks forward to assessing the potential uses for this technology in the future," she said.
Mr Ramsay said the technology allowed for real-time and near-time data processing for engineering and emergency response groups, including Queensland Rail and people managing pipelines and powerlines.