The Arizona Department of Transportation submitted a competitive grant bid that, if awarded, would allocate approximately $65 million to speed up already-planned improvement projects on US 93 between Wickenburg and Interstate 40. 

If the grant application is approved, these competitive funds would be added to state match funding and additional federal dollars, for a potential total of more than $200 million for the improvements on US 93, in partnership with the Federal Highway Administration. 

The prospective funding and work would come from an Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant through the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). It would complement work already completed by ADOT, improving safety and removing existing bottlenecks along a major route between Phoenix and Las Vegas. 

The projects include a three-mile stretch of the highway near Cane Springs, four and a half miles near Big Jim Wash and three miles near Vista Royale. Together, these three projects will widen more than 10 miles of US 93 to a four-lane divided highway. Currently, fewer than 40 miles of US 93 between Wickenburg and I-40 remain a two-lane highway.

ADOT has dedicated nearly half a billion dollars to widening and improving US 93 in this region over the last several years. ADOT's long-term vision is to transform this highly traveled route into a four-lane divided highway. 

Improvements to these three segments will enhance safety and further prepare Arizona and the region for increased population growth, as well as economic and freight activity. US 93 between Wickenburg and Kingman is designated as the Future Interstate 11. With the grant, ADOT will improve project delivery through accelerated construction techniques delivering the improvements earlier than traditionally available.

For more information:/ and https://www.transportation.gov/

PHOENIX – The Record of Decision and Final Preliminary Section 4(f) Evaluation for the 280-mile Interstate 11 study corridor – stretching from Nogales to Wickenburg – has been completed and published. After more than five years of study, technical analysis and input from communities and stakeholders, the publication of this decision document marks a major milestone as the final step in the Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement process for this proposed highway corridor.

The signed Record of Decision, approved by the Federal Highway Administration, is available at i11study.com/Arizona. The Record of Decision was prepared by the Arizona Department of Transportation and the FHWA, and was completed in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. This decision document identifies the Selected Corridor Alternative, which is a Build Alternative. The Selected Corridor Alternative is a combination of new and existing roadways.

The Selected Corridor Alternative is the same as the Preferred Corridor Alternative outlined in the Final Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement published on July 16, 2021. The 2,000-foot-wide Selected Corridor Alternative is the area within which the proposed I-11 facility could be built.

For I-11 to advance as a construction project, several additional steps would be required. These steps would include NEPA approval, identifying funding, and conducting specific, project-level Tier 2 NEPA studies of priority corridor segments. It is during the Tier 2 process that the Selected Corridor Alternative would be narrowed to a maximum 400-foot-wide highway alignment, or route. Based on need and purpose, these segments would focus on smaller and shorter sections of I-11 and not the entire 280-mile corridor. Currently there are no plans or funding available to initiate these Tier 2 studies.

The I-11 Tier 1 environmental study began in 2016. All study documents and public outreach materials are available at i11study.com/Arizona, including an Interactive EIS that was published in addition to the Final Tier 1 EIS in July 2021. Formal public comment periods were held in 2016, 2017 and 2019, with a 30-day public review period for the Final Tier 1 EIS from July 16 through August 16, 2021. A total of 18 public meetings and hearings were held throughout the five-year study process to inform community members about the study, engage with them and listen to their feedback, and document their questions and comments for the public record.

The Tier 1 study includes more than five years of technical analysis; coordination with study partners such as cooperating agencies, participating agencies and tribal governments; and the review and consideration of public input received at study milestones. All of this information informed the decision identifying the Selected Corridor Alternative documented in the Record of Decision.

The proposed I-11 is envisioned as a multi-use corridor that would improve Arizona’s access to regional and international markets while opening up new opportunities for enhanced travel, mobility, trade, commerce, job growth and economic competitiveness.

The concept of a high-capacity, high-priority north-south transportation facility that connects U.S. markets to Canada and Mexico through the western U.S. has been considered for more than 25 years. In 2015, the U.S. Congress approved the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), which formally designated I-11 as an interstate highway through Arizona and reinforced the concept for I-11 that had emerged from previous ADOT studies. This designation did not include funding for design and construction.

For more information about I-11 and the Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, visit i11study.com/Arizona.

The Final Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement for the 280-mile Interstate 11 study corridor – stretching from Nogales to Wickenburg – is now available for public review. 

After five years of study, technical analysis and input from communities and stakeholders, this publication of the I-11 Final Tier 1 EIS marks a milestone for the proposed corridor.

The Final Tier 1 EIS, including a Preliminary Section 4(f) Evaluation, is available at i11study.com/Arizona/index.asp.

The website also lists locations throughout the study area where a hard copy of the Final Tier 1 EIS is available for review. The 30-day public review period runs through the close of business on Monday, Aug. 16. For information on how to submit a comment, visit the Contact Us page on the study website. That link is here: i11study.com/Arizona/ContactUs.asp.

Prepared by the Arizona Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration, the Final Tier 1 EIS was completed in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. It outlines the Preferred Corridor Alternative, including a parallel analysis of the No-Build Alternative.

The Final Tier 1 EIS focuses on the 2,000-foot-wide Preferred Corridor Alternative and the changes that were made since the publication of the 2,000-foot-wide Recommended Corridor Alternative in the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement in April 2019.

The Final Tier 1 EIS document is presented in a condensed format that avoids repetition of material from the Draft Tier 1 EIS. The Final Tier 1 EIS is a much shorter document, references the Draft Tier 1 EIS, and includes a complete overview of the project and its impacts on the environment. ADOT and FHWA decided to use the condensed format, in part, to streamline complex information as requested by several cooperating and participating agencies.

In addition to the Final Tier 1 EIS document that will be posted online and available as a hard copy document at designated repository locations, an Interactive EIS will also be available on the I-11 study website: i11study.com/Arizona/index.asp. This is the first time that ADOT has published an Interactive EIS. It contains the same information as the traditional Final Tier 1 EIS document in an interactive and engaging format. 

ADOT and FHWA listened to and read every public comment submitted during the Tier 1 study. The study team gave consideration to comments from the public and stakeholders during the Draft Tier 1 EIS 90-day public comment period from April 5, 2019 through July 8, 2019. ADOT and FHWA made changes to the corridor after the Draft Tier 1 EIS public comment process was complete. Appendix H of the Final Tier 1 EIS documents the comments received on the Draft Tier 1 EIS and provides responses to those comments. Appendix H can be found here: i11study.com/Arizona/Documents.asp.

The process to develop a Preferred Corridor Alternative for the Final Tier 1 EIS included technical analysis; coordination with study partners such as cooperating agencies, participating agencies and tribal governments; and the review and consideration of public input received at study milestones.

Once the 30-day public review period is complete for the Final Tier 1 EIS, ADOT and FHWA will work toward a Record of Decision (ROD). That document, which is scheduled to be published in late 2021, will identify a Selected Corridor Alternative or the No-Build Option. The ROD marks the end of the Tier 1 EIS process.

If a build corridor is selected at the end of the Tier 1 study, further Tier 2 studies and evaluations must take place before construction could be considered. The corridor would be narrowed to a highway alignment, which is about 400 feet wide. An alignment determining where I-11 could be built would be decided during a future phase of design and environmental studies. Currently there are no plans or funding available to initiate these Tier 2 studies.

The proposed I-11 is envisioned as a multi-use corridor that would provide a connection from Mexico to the Hoover Dam, connecting with I-11 in Nevada. This proposed statewide highway would improve Arizona’s access to regional and international markets while opening up new opportunities for enhanced travel, mobility, trade, commerce, job growth and economic competitiveness. While the evaluation phase of this high-priority and high-capacity transportation corridor has begun, funding for further studies, design and construction has not been identified.

In 2015, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, or FAST Act, formally designated I-11 in Arizona. The designation doesn’t include funding but identifies I-11 as a high-priority corridor eligible for federal funding. I-11 is envisioned to include a combination of new and existing roadways.

For more information about I-11 and the Final Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, visit i11study.com/Arizona/index.asp.

PHOENIX – Additional information that is part of the draft environmental document for the proposed Interstate 11 corridor, stretching from Nogales to Wickenburg, has been released. To provide sufficient time for community review of the entire draft environmental impact statement, the public comment period has been extended to July 8, providing a full 90 days of review from the draft’s initial release.

The additional information, called the errata, for the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed I-11 corridor, was made available on April 26. This additional information, as well as the entire Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, can be found online at i11study.com/Arizona and at all locations where copies of the environmental document are available for review or purchase.

As a Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, I-11 is a concept far from construction. No funding has been identified or proposed to move to Tier 2 studies on any segments of the corridor. Those Tier 2 studies would identify specific alignments for a roadway, within a selected build corridor alternative. In all, the Recommended Corridor Alternative identified in the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement is 2,000 feet wide. Specific alignments, as would be identified in Tier 2 studies, would be about 400 feet wide.

Prepared by the Arizona Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration over the course of three years, the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement describes the study process, completed in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. It proposes a Recommended Corridor Alternative, with analysis of other alternatives and a no-build option.

Kicking off next week is a series of six public hearings on the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement for the 280-mile proposed I-11 corridor. Meetings will be held in Buckeye, Wickenburg, Casa Grande, Nogales, Tucson and Marana. Each meeting provides the same forum for learning about the project and providing formal comments, which will be used by the study team to guide development of the Final Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement.

There are several ways to submit comments on the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, including online, in person at a public hearing, and by email, U.S. postal mail and a bilingual telephone hotline. Hearings will be held:

Monday, April 29: 5 to 8 p.m., Palo Verde Energy Education Center, 600 N. Verrado Way, Buckeye

Tuesday, April 30: 4 to 7 p.m., Wickenburg Community Center, 160 N. Valentine St., Wickenburg

Wednesday, May 1: 5 to 8 p.m., Holiday Inn, 777 N. Pinal Ave., Casa Grande

Tuesday, May 7: 4 to 7 p.m., Quality Hotel Americana, 639 N. Grand Ave., Nogales

Wednesday, May 8: 3 to 8 p.m., Tucson Convention Center Ballrooms/Lobby, 260 S. Church Ave., Tucson

Saturday, May 11: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Marana High School Cafeteria, 12000 W. Emigh Road, Marana

In addition to providing verbal or written comments at a public hearing, members of the community can submit comments or questions through July 8 using the following methods:

Online: i11study.com/Arizona

Email: [email protected]

Bilingual Phone: 1.844.544.8049

Mail: I-11 Tier 1 EIS Study Team, c/o ADOT Communications, 1655 W. Jackson St., Mail Drop 126F, Phoenix, AZ 85007

In 2015, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, or FAST Act, formally designated I-11 in Arizona. The designation doesn’t include funding but identifies I-11 as a high-priority corridor eligible for federal funding.

For more information about I-11 and the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, visit i11study.com/Arizona.

PHOENIX – The Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement for the 280-mile Interstate 11 corridor – stretching from Nogales to Wickenburg – is now available for review and comment. After three years of study, technical analysis, and input from communities and stakeholders, movement of the I-11 Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement to the public comment phase is a milestone for the proposed corridor.

Members of the public are encouraged to review the draft environmental document and provide input beginning April 5 through May 31. The Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, including a Preliminary Section 4(f) Evaluation, is available at i11study.com/Arizona. The website also lists locations throughout the study area where a copy of the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement is available for review.

Prepared by the Arizona Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration, the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement describes the study process, completed in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. It proposes a Recommended Corridor Alternative, including a parallel analysis of the No-Build Alternative.

The Recommended Corridor Alternative is 2,000 feet wide and includes an area where construction of I-11 could be further analyzed. If a corridor is selected at the end of the Tier 1 study, further Tier 2 studies and evaluations must take place before construction could be considered. The corridor would be narrowed to a highway alignment, which is about 400 feet wide. An alignment determining where I-11 could be built would be decided during a future phase of design and environmental studies. Currently, however, there are no plans or funding available to initiate these Tier 2 studies.

There are several ways to submit comments on the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, including online, in person at a public hearing, and by email, U.S. postal mail and a bilingual telephone hotline. The same information, as well as opportunities for the public to comment, will be available at each hearing:

In addition to providing verbal or written comments at a public hearing, comments can be submitted using the following methods:

Online: i11study.com/Arizona
Email: [email protected]
Bilingual Phone: 1.844.544.8049
Mail: I-11 Tier 1 EIS Study Team, c/o ADOT Communications, 1655 W. Jackson St., Mail Drop 126F, Phoenix, AZ 85007

Once the public comment period is complete for the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, the I-11 study team will continue to evaluate the Recommended Corridor Alternative based on the comments received and the ongoing technical analysis. The Final Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement will present a Preferred Corridor Alternative and the No-Build Option. Finally, the Record of Decision from the Federal Highway Administration will present either a Selected Corridor Alternative or the No-Build Option.

The proposed I-11 is envisioned as a multi-use corridor that would provide a connection from Mexico to the Hoover Dam, connecting with I-11 in Nevada. This proposed statewide highway would improve Arizona’s access to regional and international markets while opening up new opportunities for enhanced travel, mobility, trade, commerce, job growth and economic competitiveness. While the evaluation phase of this high-priority and high-capacity transportation corridor has begun, funding for further studies, design and construction has not been identified.

In 2015, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, or FAST Act, formally designated I-11 in Arizona. The designation doesn’t include funding but identifies I-11 as a high-priority corridor eligible for federal funding. I-11 is envisioned to include a combination of new and existing roadways.

For more information about I-11 and the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, visit i11study.com/Arizona.

PHOENIX – After investing more than half a billion dollars over the past 20 years to turn the primary route between Phoenix and Las Vegas into a modern four-lane divided highway, the Arizona Department of Transportation has committed another $155 million for improvements to US 93 over the next five years.

All of this is with an eye toward an Interstate 11 between the two largest cities in the country not directly connected by an interstate freeway and spanning the state from the border with Mexico to Hoover Dam. Since 2014, signs have marked US 93 in Arizona as the “Future I-11 Corridor.”

“ADOT has spent years investing in the future Interstate 11 and laying the foundation for this border-to-border highway,” ADOT Director John Halikowski said. “We’re putting the pieces together today for what I-11 will be in the future. These substantial and continuing investments show our commitment to a corridor that is essential for commercial and recreational travel and also to making Arizona a better place to live and work.”

In addition to the completed and planned improvements to US 93, a $134 million ADOT project beginning next year will upgrade State Route 189, the 3.75-mile Nogales highway connecting Interstate 19 with the Mariposa Port of Entry. This route is essential to trade between Arizona and Mexico, the state’s largest international trading partner.

In 2015, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, or FAST Act, formally designated I-11 throughout Arizona. It stated that the I-11 corridor will generally follow State Route 189 and Interstate 19 from Nogales to Tucson, Interstate 10 from Tucson to Phoenix, and US 93 from Wickenburg to the Nevada state line.

The designation doesn’t include funding but identifies I-11 as a high-priority corridor eligible for federal funding. ADOT continues to work with its federal, state and local partners to identify funding for I-11, which is expected to include a combination of new and existing roadways. 

ADOT is currently funding and conducting an environmental study to identify a potential 2,000-foot wide corridor for I-11 between Nogales and Wickenburg. The Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement, required by the National Environmental Policy Act, is expected to be complete in late 2019 or early 2020. Tier 2 environmental studies would be required to narrow a corridor into a specific freeway alignment if the build option is selected as part of the Tier 1 study.

As I-11 comes closer to reality in Arizona, US 93 would be upgraded to interstate highway standards, including creating traffic interchanges.

Currently all but 39 miles of the 200-mile drive from Wickenburg to the Nevada state line has been upgraded to a four-lane divided highway to improve traffic flow, support the movement of freight and enhance safety through this heavily traveled area. The entire northern segment of US 93 from Kingman to the Nevada state line (mileposts 1 to 68) is now a four-lane divided highway following the completion of a $71 million project in 2010.

ADOT’s 2019-2023 Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program includes more than $155 million dedicated to projects to improve US 93 from Wickenburg to the Nevada state line north of Kingman, the designated route of I-11. This includes three projects that will widen an additional 11 miles of US 93 to four-lane divided highway and the start of right-of-way acquisition for a new US 93 interchange with I-40 in Kingman.

“Interstate freeways are Arizona’s Key Commerce Corridors, the foundation moving commerce and connecting friends and families,” Halikowski said. “To remain competitive in the ever-evolving global marketplace, our transportation infrastructure must advance with our state’s needs. That’s what’s behind ADOT’s ongoing commitment to advancing US 93 and the concept of Interstate 11.”

For more information about I-11 in Arizona, visit i11study.com/Arizona.