PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has received a $566,000 federal grant to support its continuing efforts to reduce the number of crashes involving wildlife and to better connect habitats. 

ADOT will use this grant, through the Federal Highway Administration’s Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program, to develop an online mapping tool that will help identify wildlife-vehicle collision hotspots, analyze data about collisions and identify wildlife corridors for habitat connectivity. This will help the department develop and prioritize projects and build cost estimates to support future projects to protect wildlife and drivers. 

Geographic information systems (GIS) mapping technology will enable ADOT to combine habitat connectivity information, crash data and strategies developed through the years to reduce collisions with wildlife. The final product will help ADOT efficiently identify and evaluate wildlife crossing locations. 

It’s an important undertaking when it comes to ADOT’s vision of safely connecting Arizonans. In 2023 alone there were 2,014 collisions with animals, resulting in 241 injuries and four fatalities, according to statewide crash figures reported by ADOT. 

This system will build on a 2006 Arizona Wildlife Linkages Assessment that ADOT developed with partners to address wildlife connectivity needs during project planning. It also will draw on a 2021 Statewide Wildlife Vehicle Conflict Study that used crash data to identify collision hotpots, as well as using Arizona Game and Fish Department data from GPS collars used to monitor wildlife and other sources of critical information from within and beyond ADOT. 

ADOT’s is one of 16 projects selected nationally for fiscal year 2024-25 using funds provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which makes a total of $350 million available over five years through fiscal year 2025-26 under the Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program. This grant requires a $32,000 state match. 

In the first round of grants awarded in late 2023, Arizona received a $24 million grant for a wildlife overpass and other improvements designed to reduce crashes involving wildlife and better connect habitats along Interstate 17 in northern Arizona. That project, which is expected to begin this spring, includes double cattle guards at interchanges and 8.4 miles of fencing between the Munds Park traffic interchange, about 25 miles south of Flagstaff, and the Kelly Canyon traffic interchange to the north. The new 8-foot-tall wildlife fencing will tie into existing culverts and ramps to help wildlife escape fenced areas..

Other efforts by ADOT and partners to reduce collisions with wildlife include constructing wildlife overpasses and underpasses along US 93 near Hoover Dam; a system of fencing and wildlife crossings on State Route 260 east of Payson; a wildlife overpass and underpass on State Route 77 (Oracle Road) north of Tucson; and two wildlife underpasses and 6 miles of fencing on State Route 86 between Tucson and Sells.

PHOENIX – Working with partner agencies and benefiting from public input, the Arizona Department of Transportation has completed a five-year update of the strategic plan for enhancing safety on all public roadways. 

The Strategic Highway Safety Plan for 2025-2029 is a data-driven plan that establishes statewide goals, objectives and key emphasis areas that allow highway safety programs and partners to align goals and leverage resources for engineering, education, enforcement and emergency medical services. The plan also focuses on the responsibility all Arizonans have to help reduce life-altering crashes on local roads and state highways. 

The effort included public meetings and benefited from thousands of comments and suggestions. As part of the in-depth process, ADOT also created the state’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan, which aims to reduce pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities where those activities are along or intersect with the state highway system. 

Both plans are posted at azdot.gov/SafetyPlan. 

“I’m grateful to the many partners who collaborated on these critical blueprints for reducing life-altering crashes on roadways across Arizona,” ADOT Director Jennifer Toth said. “Wherever drivers are traveling, everyone has a role to play by making safety their top priority every day. We will take these findings and engage the public further, working with partners on a campaign to inform the community about ways that simple actions can save lives.”

Arizona’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan stems from a rise in pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities in Arizona, the vast majority of which occur on local roadways. The plan recommends location-specific projects along the state highway system aimed at improving safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.

“The Strategic Highway Safety Plan and Active Transportation Safety Action Plan are comprehensive, coordinated road maps for reducing crashes, deaths, injuries and property damage,” said J.M. “Jesse” Torrez, Director of the Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. “The partners in this effort are committed to generating the public awareness and community engagement needed to achieve these goals.”  

Federal regulations require each state to have a Strategic Highway Safety Plan for reducing fatalities and serious injuries on public roadways and to update that plan every five years. ADOT leads development of this plan in partnership with local, state, federal and other stakeholders so that all highway safety programs can leverage resources and work together effectively to enhance safety.

The updated Strategic Highway Safety Plan focuses on the following emphasis areas that account for a large percentage of life-altering crashes in Arizona: human behavior; intersections; lane departure; vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists; and incidents on tribal lands. It details dozens of strategies, including:

• improving visibility of vulnerable road users, all other users and roadway features;
• incorporating vulnerable road users more prominently in the planning, design and programming process;
• reducing high-risk movements by drivers; 
• conducting high-visibility enforcement at intersections; and 
• promoting safety at crash scenes.

The update is based on the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe System Approach, which looks at all factors affecting safety and emphasizes a shared responsibility for improving safety on roadways. 

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/SafetyPlan.

PHOENIX – Comments are welcome through Friday, Sept. 6, on the Arizona Department of Transportation’s proposed update to its Strategic Highway Safety Plan and a draft of the state’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan, which aims to reduce pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities where those activities intersect with the state highway system. 

Both proposals are available for review at azdot.gov/SafetyPlan. 

Federal regulations require each state to have a Strategic Highway Safety Plan for reducing fatalities and serious injuries on public roadways and to update that plan every five years. ADOT leads development of this plan in partnership with local, state, federal and other stakeholders so that all highway safety programs can leverage resources and work together effectively to enhance safety.

The proposed Strategic Highway Safety Plan update, developed after a series of public meetings earlier this year, focuses on the following emphasis areas that account for a large percentage of life-altering crashes in Arizona: human behavior; intersections; lane departure; vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists; and incidents on tribal lands.

ADOT and its partners propose dozens of strategies based on public and stakeholder input, data analysis, and previously completed research and planning. These include:

• improving visibility of vulnerable road users, all other users and roadway features;

• incorporating vulnerable road users more prominently in the planning, design and programming process;

• reducing high-risk movements by drivers; 

• conducting high-visibility enforcement at intersections; and 

• promoting safety at crash scenes.

The proposed update is based on the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe System Approach, which looks at all factors affecting safety and emphasizes a shared responsibility for improving safety on roadways. 

ADOT and its partners also are developing Arizona’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan to address a rise in pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities in Arizona, the vast majority of which occur on local roadways. This proposal recommends location-specific projects along the state highway system aimed at improving safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.

You also can provide input on both proposals through Friday, Sept. 6, in these ways:

• Complete an online survey at: azdot.gov/SafetyPlanComments

• Email: [email protected] 

• Call the bilingual phone line: 855.712.8530

• Mail: ADOT SHSP & ATSAP, 1655 W. Jackson St., MD 126F, Phoenix, AZ 85007

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/SafetyPlan.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation is seeking public input on a proposed update to its Strategic Highway Safety Plan and a draft of the state’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan, which aims to reduce pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities where those activities intersect with the state highway system. 

Both proposals are available for review at azdot.gov/SafetyPlan. Comments are welcome through Friday, Sept. 6.

Federal regulations require each state to have a Strategic Highway Safety Plan for reducing fatalities and serious injuries on public roadways and to update that plan every five years. ADOT leads development of this plan in partnership with local, state, federal and other stakeholders so that all highway safety programs can leverage resources and work together effectively to enhance safety.

The proposed Strategic Highway Safety Plan update, developed after a series of public meetings earlier this year, focuses on the following emphasis areas that account for a large percentage of life-altering crashes in Arizona: human behavior; intersections; lane departure; vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists; and incidents on tribal lands.

ADOT and its partners propose dozens of strategies based on public and stakeholder input, data analysis, and previously completed research and planning. These include:

• improving visibility of vulnerable road users, all other users and roadway features;
• incorporating vulnerable road users more prominently in the planning, design and programming process;
• reducing high-risk movements by drivers; 
• conducting high-visibility enforcement at intersections; and 
• promoting safety at crash scenes.

The proposed update is based on the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe System Approach, which looks at all factors affecting safety and emphasizes a shared responsibility for improving safety on roadways. 

ADOT and its partners also are developing Arizona’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan to address a rise in pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities in Arizona, the vast majority of which occur on local roadways. This proposal recommends location-specific projects along the state highway system aimed at improving safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.

You also can provide input on both proposals through Friday, Sept. 6, in these ways:

• Complete an online survey at: azdot.gov/SafetyPlanComments
• Email: [email protected] 
• Call the bilingual phone line: 855.712.8530
• Mail: ADOT SHSP & ATSAP, 1655 W. Jackson St., MD 126F, Phoenix, AZ 85007

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/SafetyPlan.

PHOENIX – Picacho Peak stands out as the signature landmark along Interstate 10 between Phoenix and Tucson. Next to the freeway, a transportation landmark entering its fifth monsoon season stands ready to activate when blowing dust dangerously reduces visibility.

During Monsoon Awareness Week, the Arizona Department of Transportation is reminding drivers how this first-of-its-system works to enhance safety with signs that can lower the legal speed limit and message boards that post urgent updates. It stretches along 10 miles of I-10 between Eloy and Picacho, an area with a history of blowing dust and storm-related crashes.

The system has operated as designed since the start of the 2020 monsoon season and has activated during an estimated 50 blowing dust events. It’s achieving positive results too: Roadway sensors show motorists are slowing down in the dust detection zone when the system automatically reduces speed limits.

Thirteen visibility sensors mounted on posts along the freeway use light beams to determine the density of dust particles in the air. Once visibility drops to certain levels, the system activates overhead message boards and the variable speed limit signs.

As drivers approach the area, they are greeted by signs saying “Caution: Variable Speed Limit Corridor.” Then a series of programmable speed limit signs every 1,000 feet can change the legal speed limit from 75 mph to as low as 35 mph. More electronic signs are posted in the corridor to remind drivers of the temporary speed limit.

Drivers will also see overhead electronic message boards in and near the corridor that alert them to blowing dust and warn them to slow down. Speed feedback signs will inform drivers of their real-time speeds. An important reminder: The variable speed limits are enforceable, meaning drivers can get cited for exceeding the temporarily reduced speed limit.

This technology cannot replace common sense when it comes to driving in dust storms. While drivers will get almost instant warnings about hazardous driving conditions within the 10-mile corridor, the safest decision drivers can make is to delay travel if a severe storm is on the move. If caught in a dust storm, drivers should take the next exit if possible. When no exits are nearby, drivers should pull off the roadway, turn off lights and take their foot off the brake. 

For additional information on dust storms and safety, please visit PullAsideStayAlive.org.

PHOENIX – Motorists taking State Route 260 to and from the Mogollon Rim on weekdays should budget extra travel time with a safety project underway west of Heber-Overgaard 

East- and westbound SR 260 traffic is alternating in one lane between Rim Road and Heber-Overgaard (mileposts 282-304) from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and from 5 a.m. to noon on Fridays. Drivers should expect significant delays that become more pronounced as the weekend approaches.

The restriction is lifted outside of the posted work hours, on weekends and on holidays. 

A $24.9 million project is extending and improving drainage facilities, constructing a 5-foot shoulder on both sides of the roadway, making guardrail improvements and spot pavement repairs, and restriping of the roadway. Construction is scheduled through summer 2026 but goes on hiatus during the winter.

For more information, visit azdot.gov/260-Rim.

PHOENIX – A grant from the Arizona Governor's Office of Highway Safety continues support for the Arizona Department of Transportation’s processing of critical crash data submitted by law enforcement.

As it has annually since 2014, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety awarded $72,000 to ADOT’s Crash Records section, which is responsible under state law for creating crash data reports that government agencies, nonprofit groups and other entities statewide use to improve traffic safety.

The grant funds an additional position within the Crash Records unit that processes crash data, helping ensure that accurate crash information is publicized in a timely manner to help agencies and stakeholders find ways to increase safety on Arizona’s roads.

The Arizona Governor's Office of Highway Safety is the focal point for highway safety issues in Arizona. The cabinet agency provides leadership by developing, promoting and coordinating programs; influencing public and private policy; and increasing public awareness of highway safety. For more information about the Governor's Office of Highway Safety, please visit azgohs.gov.

To see annual ADOT reports derived from crash data, please visit azdot.gov/crashfacts.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation is updating its Strategic Highway Safety Plan and creating the state’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan and is asking for the public’s input on safety concerns and priorities to help develop the plans. 

Federal regulations require each state to have a Strategic Highway Safety Plan for reducing fatalities and serious injuries on public roadways and to update that plan every five years. ADOT leads development of this plan in partnership with local, state, federal and other stakeholders so that all highway safety programs can leverage resources and work together effectively to enhance safety.

The Strategic Highway Safety Plan establishes a statewide vision and strategies for improving safety, with a goal of reducing life-altering crashes by 20% by 2030. The plan is based on the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe System Approach, which looks at all factors affecting safety and emphasizes a shared responsibility for improving safety on roadways. 

Meanwhile, ADOT and its partners are developing Arizona’s first Active Transportation Safety Action Plan to address a rise in pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities in Arizona, the vast majority of which occur on local roadways. This plan will recommend location-specific projects to improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists where they interact with the state highway system. 

Information on both efforts is available at adotsafetyplan.com.

ADOT is holding public meetings to provide an overview of the plans and offer the opportunity for public input on safety concerns and priorities. The meetings will be held:

Phoenix
5:30-7 p.m., Tuesday, April 30
Gateway Community College, Copper Room
108 N. 40th St.

Flagstaff
5:30-7 p.m., Thursday, May 2
Flagstaff Aquaplex
1702 N. Fourth St.

Tucson
5:30-7 p.m., Tuesday, May 7
Ramada by Wyndham
777 W. Cushing St.

Virtual
6 p.m. Thursday, May 9
Registration link: https://bit.ly/ADOTSafetyMeeting 

You also can provide input through Friday, May 17, in these ways:

• Complete an online survey at: adotsafetyplan.com 
• Email: [email protected] 
• Call the bilingual phone line: 855.712.8530
• Mail: ADOT SHSP & ATSAP, 1655 W. Jackson St., MD 126F, Phoenix, AZ 85007

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/SafetyPlan.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has received a national award for a pilot study that looks toward the day when additional transportation infrastructure will be able to give drivers critical information about conditions ahead.

The National Operations Center of Excellence, an organization dedicated to the management and operation of state highways, presented ADOT with its Transportation Systems Management and Operations (TSMO) Award in the Emerging Trends and Technologies category.

With funding provided through the Maricopa Association of Governments’ Emerging Technology Program, ADOT partnered with Verizon to test the viability of using sensors, cameras and wireless connectivity to deliver critical information about upcoming curves, work zones and slowing traffic.

“The purpose of the pilot project was to test and validate that critical safety notices could be sent to drivers in an efficient and timely manner,” said Susan Anderson, Systems Technology Group Manager for ADOT’s Transportation Systems Management and Operations division. “It helps position us for the day when vehicles are equipped to interact with transportation infrastructure.”

During the pilot program, as the test driver entered a segment, a safety message was sent to a cellphone app that broadcast an audio alert and notified a passenger with a visual alert of the real-time traffic conditions.

This technology, often referred to as vehicle-to-infrastructure or vehicle-to-everything, isn’t available yet for the general public. ADOT doesn’t currently use apps that broadcast traveler information on slowing for curves, work zones, traffic slowing and similar real-time conditions.

You can learn more about ADOT’s pilot study here.

PHOENIX – The Federal Highway Administration has awarded Arizona a $24 million grant for a wildlife overpass and other improvements designed to reduce crashes involving wildlife and better connect habitats along Interstate 17 south of Flagstaff in northern Arizona. 

The Arizona Department of Transportation, in partnership with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, sought the grant through FHWA’s Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program for improvements along 8.4 miles of I-17 between the Munds Park traffic interchange, about 25 miles south of Flagstaff, and the Kelly Canyon traffic interchange to the north. 

“I am grateful to the Federal Highway Administration for supporting Arizona’s commitment to protecting its residents, visitors and wildlife,” Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs said. “Many drivers use I-17 as a gateway to some of Arizona’s most popular treasures, including the Grand Canyon. While helping keep those travelers safe, this project will support elk, deer and other wildlife that make Arizona so special.”

The I-17 wildlife project is one of 19 nationally to receive funding through the first round of $110 million in grants from FHWA.

“We are pleased to announce the first round of grants under the Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program to projects that will significantly reduce the number of collisions between motorists and wildlife,” said Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt, who traveled to Arizona to make the announcement at Sunset Point along I-17. “These roadway safety investments will ensure that motorists and wildlife in Arizona get to their destinations safely and are a win-win for safety and the environment.”

In addition to the I-17 wildlife overpass, which is planned for milepost 327.4 in the Willard Springs area, the project also will include new 8-foot-tall wildlife fencing tying into existing culverts, ramps to help wildlife escape fenced areas and double cattle guards at interchanges. It will connect with a Game and Fish project that will retrofit wildlife fencing along 6 miles of I-17 south from Munds Park that directs wildlife to two existing large bridges. The nearly 15 miles covered by these two safety projects accounted for 58% of crashes involving wildlife between 2018 and 2022 between Stoneman Lake Road and Flagstaff. In this 31.7-mile stretch, around three-quarters of all crashes between vehicles and wildlife involve elk, which can weigh up to 1,100 pounds.

The area between Munds Park and Kelly Canyon is one of three priority areas proposed by the state for new wildlife overpasses because of higher potential for collisions involving wildlife, particularly elk and deer. The other interstate freeway locations identified as potential sites for wildlife overpasses are I-17 near the Kachina Boulevard interchange, about 6 miles south of Flagstaff, and Interstate 40 west of Parks. ADOT and its partners continue to seek funding for projects at the other two priority sites. 

Identified by the federal, state and Coconino County governments as a high priority corridor for elk movement, the 8.4 miles of I-17 through the Willard Springs area currently has no bridges and only one road culvert suitable for use by elk and deer. The wildlife overpass will be 100 feet wide designed for use by elk, deer, foxes, coyotes, bobcats, black bears, mountain lions and smaller animals. 

A projected start date will be determined in the coming months. The project will require completion of final design, including environmental review, project programming and other required steps. This process will be initiated due to the federal grant.

In 2015, FHWA awarded ADOT, the Arizona Game and Fish Department and other partners its Environmental Excellence Award for Excellence in Environmental Leadership for numerous efforts to reduce conflicts between vehicles and wildlife while connecting habitats.

“ADOT has a rich history of coordinating with the Arizona Game and Fish Department and other partners on projects that promote safety for both motorists and wildlife,” ADOT Director Jennifer Toth said. “This grant will advance these efforts in a critical corridor for recreational and commercial travel while helping elk, deer and other creatures whose habitats span northern Arizona.” 

For the project funded by the Federal Highway Administration grant, Game and Fish has committed $1.5 million in matching funds along with $750,000 toward project design. Game and Fish also received a $1 million America the Beautiful Challenge grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation that, along with $387,000 in matching funds, will be used for the fence retrofit along I-17 south from Munds Park. 

“As Arizona continues to grow, crossing structures such as wildlife overpasses and underpasses will have the dual benefit of reducing wildlife-vehicle collisions for public safety while also connecting fragmented habitats, allowing wildlife to access vital resources, preserving migratory routes, and maintaining genetic diversity,” said Arizona Game and Fish Department Director Ty Gray. “We’re grateful to the Federal Highway Administration and our sister state agency, the Arizona Department of Transportation, for this opportunity to help ensure a wildlife legacy for future generations.”

Other notable collaborations between ADOT, Arizona Game and Fish Department and partners including the U.S. Forest Service and Regional Transportation Authority in Pima County include: 

• A reconstruction of 17 miles of US 93 in far northwestern Arizona featuring three wildlife overpasses and two bridged underpasses in desert bighorn sheep habitat, complemented by three underpasses on State Route 68 between Bullhead City and Golden Valley.
• A system of crossing and fencing on SR 260 east of Payson designed to reduce crashes involving elk and deer. 
• A 6-mile reconstruction of SR 77 (Oracle Road) north of Tucson that included an  overpass and underpass connecting wildlife habitats in the Santa Catalina and Tortolita mountains. 
• Two wildlife underpasses and 6 miles of fencing added to SR 86 between Tucson and Sells.