EDITOR'S NOTE: During this unprecedented time, ADOT is creating transportation activities for kids. Please visit azdot.gov/ADOTKids or use the hashtag #ADOTKids on ADOT's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts to see what we have going on.
By Steve Elliott / ADOT Communications
I hope you've enjoyed our latest ADOT Kids activity focusing on the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway and how we use designs and landscaping to make freeways nice places to be. Please remember to send us your freeway design art by 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 13, so we can include it in our slideshow of everyone's work.
If you've finished your design and are looking to do something else fun, some creative people I work with have come up with a word search and a construction zone maze. Depending on your age and interests, you can print one or both by clicking the images below.
You'll find these and other activities at the ADOT Kids home page, azdot.gov/ADOTKids.
Our ADOT Kids post announcing our latest activity on decorating freeways had facts and figures about the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway, which opened last December. I hope you were paying attention, since we're giving you a chance to put your knowledge to the test!
Please take the quiz below and then see how well your parents or friends can do! We won't tell if you look back at our original post before proceeding.
And remember, we still want to see how you would decorate the freeway! Make sure to check out our previous post to find a downloadable coloring page to show off your highway art. Have an adult take a picture or scan your artwork and send it to us at [email protected]. We'll post every design we receive by 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 13, in a slideshow that we'll post Friday, May 15.
EDITOR'S NOTE: During this unprecedented time, ADOT is creating transportation activities for kids. Please visit azdot.gov/ADOTKids or use the hashtag #ADOTKids on ADOT's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts to see what we have going on.
By Steve Elliott / ADOT Communications
Wow! Thank you for all of the safety messages you kids shared with us over the past week.
From this one by Bria in Peoria ...
WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING
WE'RE NOT PLAYING
PIN THE TAIL
ON THE DONKEY
... to this one by Allisson in Gila Bend ...
DON'T SPEED
OR YOU WILL BE
SPEEDILY IN JAIL
... every one of these creative messages showed how much you all care about keeping Arizona safe. We had a great time reading them.
As promised, the video at right has Doug Pacey, our safety projects manager in ADOT Communications, answering your questions and featuring some of your messages. I hope you enjoy it.
Before we show your art, I hope you're all making freeway decorations for this week's ADOT Kids activity. And in addition to sending us your designs, please share questions about the new Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway. That's the largest single highway project in Arizona history. One of the people in charge of building that 22-mile freeway will answer questions about anything that interests you, from the designs to the bridges to the pavement. Please send your questions to [email protected].
If you're still trying to brainstorm some ideas for art along the South Mountain Freeway, we have a series of videos to inspire you! These videos will take you along as the project progresses and detail how the 22-mile highway came to be.
The next time you’re riding in the passenger seat or back seat down the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway, or perhaps another freeway closer to you, take a few minutes to gaze out of the window. But don’t look at the mountains or a beautiful sunset. Instead, look at the colorful designs on the bridges, ramps and sound walls. Look at the plants too.
An ADOT team creates designs for a freeway based on either the history or the current use of the land. If you drive over the Salt River on the South Mountain Freeway, you can see images that look like waves of water passing over desert rocks. In the West Valley, the South Mountain Freeway designs are inspired by the area’s agricultural past. In Ahwatukee, the freeway's designs are inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright, one of the greatest architects in American history. He once worked in that area.
ADOT also decides which plants and other landscaping accents will help make a highway beautiful.
The video at right shows you designs and the landscaping along the 22-mile South Mountain Freeway.
But what if those walls, bridges and ramps were blank? What would you draw on them? Would they be animals or saguaros? What plants and colored rock would be in the landscaping? This ADOT Kids activity asks you to make those choices and create your own freeway designs.
It isn't just the South Mountain Freeway with neat designs. The new State Route 87 interchange with Interstate 10 between Phoenix and Tucson has designs inspired by cotton grown in that area. In Tucson, sound walls at the new Ajo Way interchange with Interstate 19 have images of mountains and saguaros that speak to that area's landscape. If you need more inspiration, the slideshow at right has images of highway designs around the state.
Not everyone is fortunate to have beautiful designs on walls and bridges. The first time my dad came to Arizona, he was surprised by images of desert plants on the sound walls that separate the freeway from buildings. Near his home in Ohio, freeway walls are just that: a gray concrete wall with no decoration.
Fortunately, in Arizona we use freeway designs to help tell the story of an area.
For a different perspective on the South Mountain Freeway's design, check out the video at right shot using our drone.
Print out the coloring sheet and draw your own freeway design!
Make a freeway beautiful using the coloring sheet linked here and posted at bottom right. Or draw your own from scratch. Add your own designs and colors. Pick and locate plants. Will you use decorative rock? All of the choices are up to you.
Here some interesting freeway fun facts ...
The freeway looks like it’s all concrete, but it includes enough steel rebar weighing 40 million pounds. That's about the same as 3,100 elephants!
To build the freeway, we moved enough dirt to fill State Farm Stadium, where the Arizona Cardinals play, six times!
Ever heard of a chuckwalla? They’re small lizards that lived on South Mountain. We moved about 120 of them to keep them safe during construction. Here's a video of the relocation.
How did the jackrabbit cross the road? There are five crossings under the freeway where people and animals can get safety from one side of the road to the other.
EDITOR'S NOTE: During this unprecedented time, ADOT is creating transportation activities for kids. Please visit azdot.gov/ADOTKids or use the hashtag #ADOTKids on ADOT's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts to see what we have going on.
By Steve Elliott / ADOT Communications
I hope you've enjoyed this week's ADOT Kids activity on creating safety messages like the ones we put above highways around Arizona. The messages and colorings you've shared have been great.
Please remember that every message we receive by 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 6, will go into a slideshow we'll share on the ADOT Blog on Friday, May 8. Please have an adult scan or take a picture of yours and email it to [email protected].
Now, for today's topic ...
Because our goal at ADOT is for everyone to get safely home, one of the ways we celebrate safety is an annual calendar featuring drawings by children and grandchildren of our employees. Every month features a drawing created by a young person, such as the cover drawing at right by Hollie Allen.
I hope you enjoy looking the art and safety messages and are inspired to create drawings and safety messages of your own to share with relatives and friends. Safety is everyone's responsibility, and kids can play a big part in that.
Let's look at each month's drawing and the safety topic it features. You'll notice that some of these relate to the work we do at ADOT, while others are tips that everyone can use. You can click on any drawing to see a larger version.
What kind of safety drawings and messages could you create for the things you, your family, your friends and your classmates do every day?
EDITOR'S NOTE: During this unprecedented time, ADOT is creating transportation activities for kids. Please visit azdot.gov/ADOTKids or use the hashtag #ADOTKids on ADOT's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts to see what we have going on.
By Steve Elliott / ADOT Communications
Kids, are using #Zoom for the classroom or to catch up with friends? Our free Zoom video downloads will show you what an earthmover can do, take you over the San Francisco Peaks or to the red rocks of Sedona. #ADOTKids#AZTogether#Zoombackgroundpic.twitter.com/7NgehAoPm5
Answer: More Zoom video backgrounds! You'll find six new ones below, and the video in the tweet at right shows them all.
A recent blog post had some tips on using Zoom virtual backgrounds. Here are a few more on how to use video backgrounds. The Zoom website also has some good tips.
Here's how to download our backgrounds.
Click on an image to see the video you want to use.
Once you get to our Vimeo site, scroll down past the video and look for the "Download" button. It will be at the bottom right of the page.
Download the video and save to your computer.
Then, when you start your next Zoom session, you can upload your virtual Zoom video as your background.
ADOT Kids: Art and answers to your bridge questions!
ADOT Kids: Art and answers to your bridge questions!
May 1, 2020
EDITOR'S NOTE: During this unprecedented time, ADOT is creating transportation activities for kids. Please visit azdot.gov/ADOTKids or use the hashtag #ADOTKids on ADOT's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts to see what we have going on.
By Garin Groff / ADOT Communications
We’re excited that so many kids wanted to learn more about bridges and also that so many of you shared your bridge drawings with us!
We’ve already explained some of the work that goes into designing, building and maintaining bridges, and then we asked you to share questions you have about bridges. And you had lots of great questions! The video at right has answers from David Benton, ADOT’s bridge design manager. And here are some others, also with Mr. Benton's help:
What is the longest bridge in Arizona?
While the video highlights the Mile-Long Bridge on Loop 202 in Tempe (a mile is 5,280 feet), after this activity ended we realized there's an even longer one. An elevated section of Interstate 10 near the "Stack" interchange with Interstate 17, just west of downtown Phoenix, is 7,111 feet long, making it the longest bridge in Arizona. Those are two very long bridges!
How do bridges withstand earthquakes?
You might be surprised by this, but bridges can be built to move and wiggle like a spring when an earthquake hits. This allows the bridge to move along with the earthquake so the bridge parts don’t get damaged. And if they do get damaged, those parts can be fixed and the bridge can still stand.
How do you fix the parts of a bridge that are underwater if they break?
Fixing bridge parts underwater is tricky. In most cases, the best way to fix a bridge part that is underwater is to pump the water away so the construction workers can get to it and make repairs.
Why are triangles strong?
Triangles are strong when you put them together with a lot of other triangles. The reason they can be so strong is because some of the three sides of that triangle can be pushed and pulled. When those sides work together as a team, they can take a lot of weight. Check out how to build a popsicle stick bridge on the internet and you can find out ways to build these triangles!
Thanks again for all these great questions. Now let’s look at everyone’s great artwork!
EDITOR'S NOTE: During this unprecedented time, ADOT is creating transportation activities for kids. Please visit azdot.gov/ADOTKids or use the hashtag #ADOTKids on ADOT's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts to see what we have going on.
ADOT Kids Activity: Create your own safety message!
ADOT Kids Activity: Create your own safety message!
April 29, 2020
EDITOR'S NOTE: During this unprecedented time, ADOT is creating transportation activities for kids. Please visit azdot.gov/ADOTKids or use the hashtag #ADOTKids on ADOT's Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts to see what we have going on.
By Doug Pacey / ADOT Communications
Have you seen the safety messages ADOT puts on digital signs above highways? The messages that sometimes relate to holidays, like Halloween or Thanksgiving, or popular movies, like "Lion King" or "Star Wars?"
We like to have fun with these, and we know that people enjoy seeing funny and creative messages. But we have a serious reason for posting safety messages: We want all drivers to make better choices. Even though our messages are sometimes silly, they all relate to traffic safety and safe driving. Our hope is that drivers will see the message and make better driving decisions, like not speeding, not driving distracted and making sure to wear a seat belt, so there are fewer people getting hurt in car crashes.
With nearly 300 of these Dynamic Message Signs above highways all across Arizona, lots of drivers and passengers – even kids! – can see the messages. The slideshow at right has some of our favorites.
Now, there are some federal guidelines ADOT must follow when we post messages. For instance, with few exceptions all messages must involve traffic information or traffic safety. Also, our signs don’t have unlimited space – they can only fit three lines and 18 letters or spaces per line.
But, in the interest of some ADOT Kids fun, let’s break the rules!
MAKE YOUR OWN MESSAGE: Let your imagination and creativity run wild when thinking up your own silly or serious safety messages. We’ve created a coloring sheet for you to create your own messages, but if your message needs more space, that’s OK. You can use your own paper or even create a message digitally.
You can create a message that follows the federal guidelines of using 18 letters and three lines or a message that goes way over the limit. Or maybe even a message that has words and pictures!
If you already know what you want your message to say, that’s great! If you’re not sure yet, here’s an ideas to get you started: Pick a safe-driving topic that matters most to you like speeding, seat belts, distracted driving, dust storms, work zone safety, motorcycles, car seats or something else.
NOTE: A slideshow with contributed safety messages is below, along with a video showcasing your work and answering questions.
