Advancing GIS for Transportation through Drone Technology

Abstract: The integration of drones in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) has revolutionized data collection and analysis, particularly in the transportation sector. This systematic review, conducted in accordance with PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines, explores the current applications, benefits, and challenges of drone technology in transportation-related GIS projects. A comprehensive search of scholarly databases (Science Direct, Scopus, TRR, TRID) was performed to identify studies focusing on drone usage for transportation infrastructure monitoring, traffic management, and environmental impact assessments. The review highlights the advantages of drones in enhancing spatial accuracy, reducing operational costs, and improving real-time data collection. Additionally, it discusses challenges such as regulatory hurdles, data integration issues, and the need for standardized methodologies. Drones significantly enhance GIS applications in transportation through improved accuracy, cost-effectiveness, and real-time data collection. This review also explores the potential of drones to facilitate rapid assessments of transportation infrastructure, enabling timely maintenance and repairs. The integration of drones with machine learning and artificial intelligence algorithms is identified as a promising approach to automate data analysis and improve predictive capabilities. Moreover, the study emphasizes the importance of developing frameworks to integrate drone-collected data with traditional GIS datasets seamlessly. However, challenges like regulatory issues and the need for standardized methodologies must be addressed. This study provides valuable insights into the evolving role of drones in transportation GIS, offering recommendations for future research and policy development to optimize their use in this critical field.