As St. Patrick’s Day approaches and Arizonans get ready to celebrate decked out in green, we want to remind drivers that practicing safe driving habits, and not leaving it up to Lady Luck, are important to remember. 

If you drive on state highways over St. Patrick’s Day weekend, you may notice some of the overhead message boards displaying traffic safety messages that encourage motorists to designate a driver and buckling up. We hope that these messages will help spark conversations and ultimately lead to everyone making better decisions behind the wheel.

Have a plan for how you’re getting home after the festivities. Whether that’s hailing a rideshare vehicle, designating a driver, or phoning a friend (all are great options). And, don’t forget to buckle up.

As Arizonans secure last-minute dinner plans and gifts for their loved ones this Valentine’s Day, we want to remind drivers that using your turn signals is an easy way to show your care for others on the road. 

If you’re out on the highways on Valentine’s Day, you might see our overhead message boards displaying a traffic safety message that encourages drivers to use their blinkers.

We hope that these messages spark discussions and ultimately help influence drivers to make better decisions behind the wheel.

With Game Day approaching and Arizonans prepping appetizers and hedging their bets on who will be crowned Super Bowl champions, we want to remind drivers to have a game plan on how to get home. 

Regardless of whether you’re rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles or the Kansas City Chiefs or you’re only watching for Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show performance, we want you to get home safely after the big game.

If you’re out on Arizona highways, you may see a traffic safety message encouraging motorists to designate a driver on our overhead message boards. We hope that these messages will help spark conversations and ultimately lead to everyone making better decisions behind the wheel.

It’s that time of year when all of us are asked what we’re grateful for. And if you asked us, we’d say we’re thankful for motorists who practice safe driving. 

If you’re on Arizona highways over the Thanksgiving holiday, you may notice traffic safety messages on our overhead message boards that encourage you to drive with care, slow down, designate a driver and use your blinkers. We put up these messages in hopes that it engages drivers and ultimately changes their behavior behind the wheel, making travel safer for everyone.

It’s particularly relevant over Thanksgiving weekend as Arizonans travel to gather with friends and family. In 2023, there were 14 fatal crashes across Arizona roads, including 3 alcohol-related fatal crashes over the Thanksgiving holiday period, according to crash reports from law enforcement and compiled by ADOT. 

Indulge in too much pecan pie and mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving and enjoy all the leftovers through the weekend, Arizona. Drive safe!

If you’re driving on Arizona highways this Friday and Saturday, you may notice some of our overhead signs displaying a traffic safety message related to the WNBA All-Star Game happening in Phoenix. 

We want to grab people’s attention and engage them with important traffic safety messages. We hope this approach and these messages resonate and prompt conversations that change driver behavior so we all make better decisions behind the wheel.

It’s always a good idea to designate a driver or have a game plan of how to get home safely if you’re choosing to consume alcohol. According to crash reports collected by ADOT, there were 5,761 alcohol-related crashes and 332 fatalities in 2023.

Be an “all-star” and drive safe this weekend.

ADOT’s vision is safely connecting people and empowering Arizona’s economy. That makes safety priority No. 1 whether we’re at a project site, designing a new bridge, making sure commercial vehicles can safely travel state highways and much more.

At ADOT Communications and Public Involvement, a big part of that mission is taking that safety message to the public. That includes, but is by no means limited to, those attention-grabbing and often humorous messages that appear when overhead message boards aren’t being used for other purposes. 

In the latest episode of our podcast, On the Road with ADOT, host Doug Nintzel talks about safety messaging with Doug Pacey, our Assistant Communication Director for Digital Communications. 

Unconventional safety messages received quite a bit of attention in recent months, and ADOT appreciates the Federal Highway Administration’s clarification on its guidance for safety messages use along highways. This podcast episode shares how ADOT works hard to use humor and cultural references that can be easily understood by drivers while crafting messages that help start important conversations about traffic safety. 

You can subscribe to monthly episodes of On the Road with ADOT through Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You also can find episodes at azdot.gov/Podcast and featured in ADOT Blog posts.

It’s Valentine’s Day and we hope that today, just like every other day of the year, you’ll make safe driving decisions behind the wheel. 

Choosing to let fellow drivers merge, using your turn signals to indicate you’re switching lanes, and not texting while driving are all simple ways to show others on the road how much you care about them — that their safety, and your own, are paramount.

We can’t give out chocolates or bouquets of flowers, but Arizonans who practice safe driving have our everlasting gratitude.

For several years, ADOT has placed traffic safety messages on overhead message boards. Often, these messages relate to holidays, like Halloween, and other events that are front-of-mind for people.

Our purpose in displaying these messages is to grab people’s attention and make them engage with important traffic safety messages. We hope this approach and these messages resonate and prompt conversations among drivers, both in person and via social media, and change driver behavior.

That’s important because, according to federal statistics, more than 90% of crashes are caused by driver behavior. That includes drivers choosing to speed, drive recklessly or impaired or engaging in distractions. We all need to make better decisions behind the wheel.

This video brings back to life traffic safety messages of Halloweens past.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Arizona DOT (@arizona_dot)