ADOT wins 2 national awards for public outreach

PHOENIX – This week, the Arizona Department of Transportation’s Office of Communications and Public Involvement won two national awards from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), a national nonprofit group that represents and supports state departments of transportation. The awards were presented during the annual TransComm conference for AASHTO communications professionals.

ADOT’s winners are:

SR 187 Improvement Project: Public Involvement Approach without a Consultant

This award recognizes public outreach efforts for transportation improvements, without the help of a consultant. The State Route 187 Improvement Project Community Relations team used a variety of methods to educate and engage drivers and residents about this project within the Gila River Indian Community and surrounding communities of Casa Grande, Coolidge and Sacaton Flats. To address limited Internet access and mail service in the area, ADOT’s team posted flyers at popular community destinations and delivered directly to homes, ran informational spots and banners on tribal television and maintained ongoing communication with tribal leadership to ensure the community received updates on the project.

Community Information Officer Kirsten Johnson: Vanguard Award

The TransComm Vanguard Award recognizes new transportation communications professionals for innovative ideas and outside perspectives. When people call or submit an online inquiry with ADOT Constituent Services, as many thousands of Arizonans do each year, chances are Kirsten “KJ” Johnson is the calm, responsive and informative person they interact with. She handles more than 1,000 calls or emails each month and has become the agency's go-to expert on handling constituent concerns, questions and suggestions with grace and speed.

This year’s annual TransComm conference in San Diego included transportation communicators representing state DOTs from across the country. The conference includes a yearly awards ceremony, with each category representing the best transportation projects around the country and the communications strategies and tactics that make them stand out. Each category is voted on by communication teams from the state DOTs. 

ADOT Communications and Public Involvement supports projects and agency priorities through public outreach, news media relations, safety communications, social media engagement, graphics and video production, website design and operations, internal communications, constituent services and more.