Big road projects will often uncover historic finds. During the £1.5bn upgrade of the A14 in Cambridgeshire, an archaeologist found what was believed to be the earliest evidence of beer brewing in Britain, dating back around 2,000 years. Generating as much excitement, for different reasons, was the introduction of a very modern concept on the same scheme. The project team pioneered artificial intelligence (AI) and machine-learning technology to successfully predict times when an accident was more likely to happen – and to take action to stop it. By collecting swathes of information and using the AI, data scientists were able to spot problems before they occurred.

A 25-tonne self-driving truck is hitting British roads in a bid to speed up time-consuming roadworks plaguing the nation's highways. The vehicle can carry a 40-tonne load and has been fitted with gadgets originally developed for autonomous trucks in Australian mines. It is being tested off the A14 in Cambridgeshire where work is under way to upgrade a 21-mile (34km) stretch of the road between Cambridge and Huntingdon. It is hoped that autonomous trucks could be developed to operate round the clock, meaning work is finished faster. Dumper trucks are used to move excavated earth, with around 10 million cubic metres moved by 200 dumper trucks during the A14 upgrade.

Britain's crumbling roads could be fixed by robots capable of filling in a pothole in a minute, scientists have predicted. An army of autonomous road vehicles or drones could one day be prowling around towns and cities identifying cracks in roads and pavements before a pothole develops. In just one minute, a robot with an attached 3D printer will be able to spray asphalt into a crack in the road to repair it. And the robots will even work anti-social hours, completing their work at night to ensure roads to not have to be closed down during the day. Leeds City Council is already working with a team of engineers and designers to pioneer the concept of'self-repairing cities'.

Self-driving lorries are to be trialled on England's motorways despite experts' fears they could put safety at risk. Up to three wirelessly connected HGVs will move in convoy, with acceleration and braking controlled by the lead vehicle. The scheme is expected to be tried on major roads next year for environmental reasons. Driving in close convoy could see the front lorry push air out of the way, making the other vehicles more efficient and lowering their emissions. But the AA warned a'platoon' of HGVs could obscure road signs for motorists and block access to slip roads.