PHOENIX – As the Arizona Department of Transportation fosters an environment of continuous improvement and waste reduction, one idea has created savings in trips to equipment shops and the cost of tire repairs: the pokey picker upper.

What is a “pokey picker upper?” Simply put, it’s a magnet that is attached to the front of an ADOT maintenance truck that hovers just above the ground collecting metal pieces and shards along the highway shoulders.

“When we were doing regular spot litter removal, the number of flat tires we were getting was so high, we needed to come up with a way to reduce that waste,” said Timothy Mitchell, highway operations supervisor for ADOT’s Quartzsite Maintenance Unit. 

Mitchell, the inventor of the pokey picker upper, brainstormed an idea to use a magnet to grab the metal before it could puncture any tires. A 3-foot bar was affixed to the front of the truck and the magnetic bar hung from that, hovering just above the ground. The device is also interchangeable so it is easily moved to either the passenger or driver side of the vehicle, depending on where it is needed.  

Crews began using the new tool a year ago to great effect. Since then their welder has improved upon the prototype. While the maintenance crew is still compiling data for the number of hours and costs related to the flat tires, they have noted that trips to the shop have dropped considerably. Before they were trekking to the shop two to four times a week for repairs, and now it's only about two to three times a month, which is a substantial improvement.

This device is an example of how ADOT employees are committed to solving problems and eliminating wasteful processes by using Governor Doug Ducey's Arizona Management System. For more information, visit ams.az.gov.

PHOENIX – When commercial truckers purchase their permits for driving through Arizona online ahead of time or use a cashless method at the port of entry, they spend less time making payments and get on their way faster. 

That’s one reason the Arizona Department of Transportation successfully implemented a pilot program to move to a fully-cashless permitting system. Now, after working with trucking companies that pay with cash to ensure they have enough time to convert to a cashless system, ADOT’s ports of entry intend to go fully cashless on Jan. 1, 2021. 

The move to end the acceptance of cash and checks at ports of entry also supports recommendations by the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention to curb the spread of COVID-19 through the exchange of currency.

ADOT’s truck permitting systems, ePro and Transport, have cashless features and nearly 80% of truckers getting permits use those features. But in order to help trucks move through the ports more efficiently, ADOT’s Enforcement and Compliance Division began to encourage the other 20% of truckers to pay for permits online using Apple Pay, Android Pay or credit card.

“We have been getting a feel from the trucking industry on how much they would support this change and the feedback has been positive,” said Lt. Jason Sloan, team lead for implementing the change. “This improvement will help eliminate waste and maximize resources available at ports of entry to process commercial traffic faster.”

The move also allows more officers to be available for enforcement duties instead of having one or more of them make a long drive from a remote port of entry to a financial institution to deposit the cash and checks collected.

This change is one more way ADOT’s continuous improvement process is making more efficient use of time, resources and taxpayer dollars. It will also be implemented at VIN inspection stations around the state.

ADOT is also developing a new commercial permitting system that will support the move to cashless and touchless that is expected to be operational by the end of next year.

PHOENIX – While 2020 presented many challenges, the Arizona Department of Transportation continued to serve drivers in northern Arizona by using different methods, including the innovative bridge slide, to improve bridges to keep cross-country commerce flowing and increase the mobility of local traffic.

In Flagstaff, ADOT completed the replacement of the Fourth Street bridge over Interstate 40 on the east side of town in just six months using the innovative bridge slide method. The slide method allowed ADOT to construct the bridges to one side, then slide them into place over one long closure which greatly reduced the impact to the traveling public.

The new bridge improves safety, traffic flow and mobility in the area by increasing the number of lanes for vehicles to use and adding a protected path for bicycles and pedestrians on one side of the bridge. The protected path connects the Flagstaff Urban Trail System across the interstate.

Along Interstate 15 through the Virgin River Gorge, ADOT resurfaced the decks of Bridge No. 2 and Bridge No. 5, while Bridge No. 4 received a new deck. Work was completed this summer after important additional repairs were made. These improvements will ensure the continued life of these bridges to safely move cars and trucks cross-country.

For this project, ADOT used a first-of-its-kind queue warning system that included portable message boards informing drivers of stop-and-go traffic ahead. Using equipment that detects traffic in real-time, the system is designed to help reduce collisions as traffic builds.

ADOT also improved the Interstate 17 bridge over McConnell Drive as you come into Flagstaff. The project, which began in 2019, involved a full bridge deck replacement, bridge widening and sidewalk construction on the north side of McConnell Drive.

For more ways on how ADOT continues to serve drivers in northern Arizona, visit azdot.gov/projects and click on the North Central District.

PHOENIX – Several major bridge and intersection replacement projects in southern Arizona presented a big challenge for the Arizona Department of Transportation in 2020: How to replace existing structures or entire interchanges without closing highways on projects that last up to two years.

The agency applied several innovative approaches to do just that, keeping passenger vehicles and commerce moving while minimizing potentially disruptive restrictions and closures.

Drivers are benefiting from the strategies at several key projects: The Interstate 10/Houghton Road interchange in Tucson, the Pinto Creek Bridge replacement on US 60 near Globe, a bridge replacement project on SR 77 in Winkelman, and the I-10/Ruthrauff Road interchange replacement project in Tucson.

The I-10/Houghton Road interchange project in Tucson began in August, a project that involves replacing a two-lane Houghton Road bridge with a six-lane diverging diamond interchange, along with rebuilding all ramps. While replacing an interchange sometimes requires extensive closures, ADOT will complete this project with only a three-month closure of two ramps - both of which have already reopened. The other two ramps and bridge are being constructed next to the existing lanes of traffic, and traffic will eventually shift to the new pavement. For the remainder of the project, only overnight closures are anticipated as traffic flows through the busy work zone.

On US 60 between Globe and Superior, ADOT has been working since late 2019 to replace the 70-year old Pinto Creek bridge in an area with rugged terrain and hour-long detours around any highway closures. However, the project required months of blasting that could only occur when US 60 was closed. ADOT’s solution was to limit closures to four hours at the same time and on the same three days of the week, ensuring motorists had a predictable schedule to plan their travels. Since the blasting wrapped up earlier this year, the highway has remained open while the project team works on the new bridge next to the existing structure. A five-day closure is anticipated toward the end of the project in 2021 as crews realign the road to the new bridge.

In Winkelman, ADOT is working to replace the two-lane SR 77 bridge over the Gila River without closing it or shifting the highway. Crews are able to do this by essentially cutting the bridge in half and rebuilding one side of the structure at a time. Since the project began in late 2019, traffic has continued to use the bridge, restricted to one direction at a time as a temporary signal regulates which direction can proceed. Delays are generally less than 15 minutes, with occasionally longer delays for two weeks at a time when new bridge girders have been set into place. The new bridge will open by summer 2021 without any extended closures of SR 77. 

At I-10 and Ruthrauff Road, one of the most heavily traveled segments of the Interstate in Tucson, ADOT has been working since January to replace a 60-year-old interchange without closing the highway. ADOT has maintained three lanes of travel in each direction during peak hours with several traffic shifts onto either the frontage road or newly rebuilt lanes of I-10. While the interchange has been closed most of 2020 and the project won’t be complete until late 2021, ADOT has made it a priority to reopen Ruthrauff/El Camino del Cerro across I-10 by summer 2021 to minimize the impact of the project even as other elements of the project will remain under construction. Also, ADOT’s contract with Sundt Construction encourages an aggressive construction schedule with an early completion incentive for finishing the project 40 days sooner than the contractor’s specified completion date. The goal is to only have the interchange closed for the 2020 holiday travel season and open again before the holidays in 2021. 

PHOENIX – At the Arizona Department of Transportation, 2020 saw the creation of a terrifying distracted driving awareness campaign, a tragic reminder of the need to drive safely in work zones and the adaptive nature of traffic safety professionals.

For National Distracted Driving Awareness Month in October, ADOT launched its “Distracted Drivers Terrify Me” public awareness campaign. The campaign features regular people doing jobs most of us find frightening. What’s the only thing that terrifies the venomous snake handler? Distracted drivers, of course.

The awareness campaign aims to influence and change driver behavior, resulting in fewer drivers engaging in terrifying distractions and making roads safer for everyone. In 2019 in Arizona, at least 10,491 drivers involved in crashes were engaged in distracted driving behavior. These crashes are entirely preventable.

National Work Zone Awareness Week carried extra significance this year in Arizona. A month prior, one of our own, Frank Dorizio, was struck and killed on Interstate 10 south of Phoenix. In the days and weeks that followed the death of Frank, a member of ADOT’s Incident Response Unit, ADOT launched into a public outreach and education effort that carried through National Work Zone Awareness Week with the objective to create more awareness about driving safely in work zones and Arizona’s “Move Over” law.

Public education about “Move Over” continued into the fall when ADOT joined with traffic safety stakeholders and observed National “Move Over” Day, placing safety messages on overhead message boards statewide.

In November 2019, Arizona traffic incident management (TIM) professionals organized the state’s first-ever mass training event for National TIM Awareness Week. The current public health crisis wouldn’t allow for a repeat of that event in 2020, so organizers developed a virtual TIM training course.

PHOENIX – A transportation agency cannot stop hazardous dust storms from blowing across highways, but in 2020 the Arizona Department of Transportation pioneered a first-ever in the nation detection and warning system that now provides quick and reliable information to help motorists slow down for safety during storms.

ADOT’s dust detection and warning system on a 10-mile stretch of Interstate 10 near Eloy began operating in June - just in time for the start of the monsoon season - after years of planning an innovative safety project in a desert region where dust storms pose a threat to drivers all year.

One of the innovative approaches project engineers took was to build a system from existing, reliable technologies - then developing a software-intensive application to tie multiple devices into a seamless and automated system.

From a motorists’ perspective, the system is remarkably simple. When sensors see a drop in visibility enough to affect driver safety, variable speed limit signs reduce the posted speed limit from the usual 75 mph to as low as 35 mph. Also, overhead message boards urge drivers to slow down because of reduced visibility.

Behind the scenes, multiple technologies work together: 13 visibility sensors, a weather radar, sensors embedded in the pavement to provide real-time information on the speed and flow of traffic, overhead message boards, speed feedback signs, closed-circuit cameras and overhead message boards. The system operates automatically while being monitored at ADOT’s Traffic Operations Center in Phoenix.

The system was activated six times since June, during an unusually calm monsoon season. Drivers did reduce their speed every time the system was activated, according to information the system gathered during each activation.

The roughly $6.5 million system was funded in part by a federal FASTLANE grant. As a pilot project, the system will advance ADOT’s knowledge of whether similar technologies would be effective along other Arizona highways. The project won a regional award for operations excellence in the 2020 America’s Transportation Awards competition, sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Automobile Association.

PHOENIX – Need to make an in-office appointment at the MVD? Don’t pick up the phone, go online and pick the location and time that works best for you.

Customers can now go to the web and schedule an in-office appointment for any service at Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division offices. Previously, in-office appointments could be scheduled online for a selection of transactions.

“MVD is excited to give customers the ability to schedule their own in-office appointments at their convenience,” said MVD Director Eric Jorgensen. “This streamlines the process of setting up an MVD appointment."

Customers can schedule in-office appointments at AZMVDNow.gov, the primary online portal for MVD customers. After logging in, users can navigate to “Schedule an Appointment” and choose from the six options listed: Travel ID, ID/Driver License Renewal, Instruction Permit, Road Test, Motorcycle Road Test and Additional Services.

AZ MVD Now accounts are free and every person with an Arizona driver license, identification card, or vehicle registered in the state has an AZ MVD Now account. Since launching in April, more than 1.5 million accounts have been activated. To activate your account, go to AZMVDNow.gov and follow the prompts.

In addition to offering the ability to schedule in-office appointments, AZ MVD Now also allows customers to complete more than two-thirds of all MVD transactions and services, potentially taking away the need to visit an office for many customers.

Masks are required to be worn by all people – employees and customers – inside MVD offices.

PHOENIX – Eggs...bread...milk...vehicle registration renewal. Yes, renewing your vehicle’s registration can now be completed during a trip to the grocery store, and many other locations, too.

Through CheckFreePay® from Fiserv, the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division is giving customers another convenient option to renew their vehicle’s registration.

“We’re constantly looking for solutions that give customers more options to complete transactions with MVD at their convenience,” said MVD Director Eric Jorgensen. “CheckFreePay is another convenient, easy way to renew a registration that some customers will appreciate.”

In 2019, more than 1.5 million registration renewal transactions were processed at in-person locations (MVD offices, kiosks or Authorized Third Party offices) and CheckFreePay gives those customers another option to complete their business with MVD.

CheckFreePay has more than 500 locations statewide, including more than 100 locations outside the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas. Most locations are in grocery and convenience stores and MVD customers can visit any of them and pay cash to renew their vehicle registration – Walmart stores will accept registration renewal payments in early 2021. Customers will need to provide the last two numbers of their vehicle’s VIN and record number, which can be found in the registration renewal mailer or email sent to customers. Upon paying, the registration will update instantly in MVD’s system and customers will receive their renewal tab in the mail.

Visit CheckFreePay.com to find locations near you and for more information. A convenience fee of $3 applies to each transaction. 

In addition to visiting a CheckFreePay location, MVD customers can continue to renew vehicle registrations online at AZMVDNow.gov or ServiceArizona.com, or visit an Authorized Third Party office.

PHOENIX — When snow begins to fall, trained Arizona Department of Transportation snowplow operators will work around the clock to keep the roads safe. Ever-evolving technology incorporated into the snowplows help give the operators a leg up during their 12-hour shifts.

This year, 25 of ADOT’s snowplows have been equipped with new cameras that can stream a live feed back to district offices. These new cameras are another technological innovation to help ADOT be more aware of road conditions along different stretches of highway. They will help decision makers like district engineers and maintenance superintendents be able to see what the plow drivers are seeing.

ADOT districts will be able to see what conditions are like in neighboring districts and make plans to get a jump on snowplow deployment.

Many of ADOT’s nearly 200 snowplows also include auxiliary cab heaters to keep drivers warm while not idling and wasting fuel; heated windshields to prevent wipers from freezing and getting stuck; backup cameras and a camera and laser guidance system to help guide operators; state-of-the-art lighting packages, and front flex plows that can bend in different configurations to remove snow.

ADOT’s 400 snowplow drivers undergo extensive training so they can keep state highways safe. Now that we’re in the season for winter storms to potentially hit, it’s time for you to get to Know Snow by reviewing ADOT’s safety tips at azdot.gov/KnowSnow.

For starters, slow down when roads are slick with snow and ice, leaving extra room behind the vehicle ahead. Take a fully charged cell phone, warm clothing and an emergency kit that includes blankets, food and water, medication and sand or kitty litter.

Check your vehicle before heading out in winter weather, making sure – at a minimum – that the tires, heater and windshield wipers are in good shape.

Before traveling, research weather conditions to determine whether it would be smarter to sit out a storm so ADOT’s snowplows can clear highways. Check road conditions by calling 511 or visiting az511.gov. ADOT’s Twitter account (@ArizonaDOT) and Facebook page (facebook.com/AZDOT) provide real-time information and interaction. 

While ADOT’s snowplow operators are ready to help you, you should help them in return. Always respect the plow. Avoid passing a snowplow that’s clearing a highway until the driver pulls over to let traffic pass, and never assume a snowplow operator knows your vehicle is nearby. If you can’t see the plow driver, there’s a good chance the driver can’t see you.

Remember: The safest place on a highway when it’s snowing is trailing a safe distance behind a snowplow.

Before traveling, start your winter season with a visit to azdot.gov/KnowSnow so you can Know Snow in Arizona.