Spring break is coming up for students across Arizona, and while it’s certainly going to be different than in recent years, many Arizona residents may still be planning to travel on our state’s highways. 

Whether you’ve planned a scenic drive or a socially distanced road trip, there are a number of things you can do to prepare.

Anytime you travel in Arizona, you should remember to bring extra drinking water. Don’t forget a fully charged cell phone and a charger, hand sanitizer, wipes and a cloth face covering to protect yourself and others.

I also encourage you to put together a kit to keep in your car that includes items you’d need in a variety of situations. 

• Emergency travel items, like battery cables, safety flares and a reflective vest
• A first-aid kit that includes pain relievers, disinfectant, bandages and any necessary prescribed medications
• A flashlight with extra batteries
• Snack foods
• A road map
• Extra radiator water, especially if you’re traveling in hot weather and/or driving on highways with dramatic uphill climbs
• Blankets, an ice scraper, a small shovel and a container of sand for traction, if you’re traveling in snowy conditions

Find more road trip safety tips, along with links and advice on our ADOT website. Remember, safety is the top priority — plan ahead and don’t take any chances that could put you and others in danger.

Hey, ADOT Kids, do you know how all those road signs are made?

The Arizona Department of Transportation makes all its own signs at a sign shop in Phoenix, where a handful of sign technicians turn out 300 to 400 signs every month.

The signs come in all shapes and sizes and in all colors, including square, rectangle, diamond, green, white, yellow, blue and red.

But, did you know they are all made from aluminum stock?

There are two ways signs are made: Screen printing and electric cutting. 

For the electric cutting method, technicians first apply reflective vinyl onto the aluminum. If it is a red sign with white letters, the white vinyl goes on first and then the red vinyl. Then the sign goes to the electric cutter. Technicians program precise measurements into the cutter machine. Then the cutter cuts out the words that will appear white on the red sign. The red vinyl is peeled off where the letters were made, revealing the white vinyl underneath. That’s how a red sign gets white letters.

Making signs is so much fun that ADOT Director John Halikowski made some from scratch during a visit to the shop several years ago. You can watch him making signs in our video. We even had a 7-year-old sign lover named Hunter Vincente tour the sign shop. Read about that visit and the "no trucks" sign that was created just for him.

The sign techs also have fun making the signs. One of them missed making signs so much he came out of retirement to return to the sign shop!

If you want to learn more about our highway signs, you can read this other ADOT Kids story we did about them. And if you would like to learn more about what goes into building and running highways and freeways, check out our ADOT Kids website for fun videos and activites to bring our your inner engineer!

At ADOT, we share many safety messages throughout the year. From reminding drivers to buckle up and expect the unexpected to telling them about dust storms, work zones and even cyberscams.

ADOT does an excellent job communicating with the public. However, as individuals, we also have an important role to play.

By sharing transportation safety information with our family, friends and loved ones, each of us can make an impact. I encourage you to be an ambassador and share our agency’s safety resources with your circle.

Just for an example, you could remind a neighbor who is planning a trip up north to prepare for snow, and you could point them toward our Know Snow web page. 

You could also let a family member know about az511.gov — ADOT’s Travel Information site. You can tell your friends about ADOT’s Twitter feed (@ArizonaDOT), which is an excellent source for traffic information, and our Focus on Driving site, which offers safe-driving tips and resources. While you’re at it, you might share our new ADOT Kids site, which includes a lot of safety tips, and is aimed toward school-aged children.

ADOT has so much safety information to share, and I hope you’ll join me in spreading the word! 

ADOT recently published the latest Motor Vehicle Crash Facts report and I’m happy to say that there’s some good news in there.

Traffic crash fatalities on Arizona roadways in 2019 fell to their lowest total in three years. The report also tallied fewer pedestrian fatalities, alcohol-related fatalities, fatalities of those not wearing seat belts and distracted drivers involved in crashes compared to the previous year.

While this is great to see, we know there’s still more that needs to be done when it comes to safer roads. The number one thing that all drivers can do is to make better choices behind the wheel. 

We know that driver behavior is a factor in more than 90% of collisions.

According to the Crash Facts report, at least 10,491 drivers involved in collisions during 2019 engaged in “distracted driving behavior.” That’s an 11.8% decrease from 2018, but still too high a number.

There were quite a few takeaways from the 2019 report. The most important thing I think we can learn from the data is that we all have a responsibility as drivers. We need to reflect on our driving habits and make improvements. Be sure to visit ADOT’s Focus on Driving website for safe-driving tips and be sure to share what you learn with your family and loved ones.

Work Zone Awareness Week 2020 is April 20-24, and I don’t know about you, but this year I think it holds even more meaning for us as an agency.

Don’t get me wrong – with more than 1,000 employees who work in maintenance and construction projects on highways throughout the state, work-zone safety is ALWAYS one of the most important issues we deal with at ADOT. However, the recent tragic loss of our ADOT colleague, Frank Dorizio, underscores for all of us just how crucial it is for drivers to be aware in the work zone.

We want everyone to get home safely at the end of the work day. Sadly, that doesn’t always happen.

With that in mind, I encourage you to talk with your family and friends about work zone safety. Explain to them that there’s just no excuse for driving recklessly.

While you’re at it, take time to examine your own driving behaviors and make the commitment to staying safe in the work zone – slow down, always obey signs and flaggers, and prepare for lane restrictions.

For more information, please check out the work zone safety section on our ADOT website and remember these tips when driving in work zones:

• Expect the unexpected. Normal speed limits may be reduced, traffic lanes may be restricted and people may be working on or near the road.
• Slow down! Speeding is one of the major causes of work zone crashes.
• Keep a safe distance. The most common type of accident in a work zone is a rear-end collision. Maintain two car lengths between you and the car in front of you as well as road crews and their equipment.
• Pay attention. The warning signs are there to help you move safely through the work zone. Observe the posted signs.
• Obey road crew flaggers. The flagger knows what is best for moving traffic safely in the work zone. A flagger has the same authority as a regulatory sign. You can be cited for disobeying a flagger's directions.
• Stay alert and minimize distractions. Dedicate your full attention to the roadway and avoid changing radio stations or using cellphones while driving in a work zone.
• Keep up with traffic flow. Motorists can help maintain traffic flow and posted speeds by merging as directed by signage.
• Be patient and stay calm. Remember, crews are working to improve the road and your commute.

Most people want to be safe drivers (at least I hope that’s the case) but unfortunately, crashes occur much too frequently.

While I often use this column to focus on ways to avoid a crash, today, I want to talk about how to safely react after a minor, non-injury collision.

In short, if you're in a non-injury fender bender, move your vehicle out of travel lanes…

Many people believe a big misconception that it’s best to stay put once you’ve experienced a freeway fender bender. But in reality, you should practice Quick Clearance.

Quick Clearance is when drivers involved in minor crashes that don’t result in injuries get vehicles out of travel lanes as soon as it’s safe to do so.

According to the Federal Highway Administration, the likelihood of a secondary crash increases by 2.8 percent for each minute the primary incident continues to be a hazard.

Moving your vehicle to the emergency shoulder, median or exiting the highway provides a safer environment for first responders and keeps travel lanes clear for other vehicles, reducing the chance of a secondary collision.

So, remember: if you are involved in a non-injury crash, and your vehicle can be moved, you should drive it out of the travel lanes then call for help.

No one wants to be involved in a crash, but knowing how to safely react if you are involved in a non-injury crash can help protect you and others.

Besides being the first highway project in Arizona to be built using a public-private partnership, the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway is also ADOT’s first freeway to use half-diverging diamond interchanges.

The new section of freeway has two of them – one at Desert Foothills Parkway and another at 17th Avenue.

A diverging diamond interchange (DDI) helps with traffic flow and safety. This type of interchange works by temporarily transitioning traffic to the left side of the road, allowing through-traffic and left-turning traffic to proceed through the interchange simultaneously, eliminating the need for a signalized left turn.

It’s a much easier concept to understand once you see it, so I suggest you check out the ADOT video that simulates driving through the South Mountain Freeway half-diverging diamonds. You can find that video, along with more details at azdot.gov/smfddi.

You might be wondering what the difference is between a half-diverging diamond interchange and a full diverging diamond interchange.

A half DDI is used when one travel direction does not extend past the interchange, limiting access to only three directions. Because Desert Foothills Parkway and 17th Avenue don’t extend south of the freeway, there was no need for a full DDI. If a future connection to the south is needed, it can easily be implemented with the current design.

When you drive it, I hope you notice the innovation and dedication it took to construct the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway. I also hope you’ll go the speed limit, avoid distractions and wear your seat belt.