By Doug Pacey / ADOT Communications

It’s something that takes an extra few minutes and can save a life: Secure your load.

Secure your load signed proclamation

On Tuesday, June 6, the Maricopa Association of Governments, Arizona Department of Public Safety and Governor’s Office of Highway Safety came together at an ADOT Maintenance Yard to recognize Secure Your Load Day in Arizona, as proclaimed by Governor Doug Ducey (click the icon at right to read the proclamation).

Surrounding them was debris collected from highways, including mattresses, furniture, a refrigerator, ladders, wooden pallets and more. One mangled couch never made it home from the furniture store, its tags still attached.

Meanwhile, ADOT's overhead signs shared this message: “SECURE YOUR LOAD, SAVE LIVES.”

Not only can debris be deadly for motorists, it puts law enforcement and road workers in the dangerous position of having to remove items while vehicles speed by.

Tie-downs, netting, bungee cords, ropes, straps and tarps all can keep your belongings in your vehicle and off the road, making travel safer for everyone.

By John Halikowski / ADOT Director

Congratulations to the 2017 graduates, both in high school and college! It is an exciting time. For high school graduates, it is a time for them to spread their wings, whether it is attending an in- or out-of-state four-year college, a community college, vocational program or military service. For college graduates and a degree in hand, it is the time to use that knowledge to work in a chosen field. Whatever these graduates do, it comes down to making wise choices.

As a parent, we try to instill in our children the importance of making wise choices; if not, there always are consequences when a wrong choice is made. That is ever-so-true when it comes to driving. So many things can go wrong if a young driver doesn’t wear a seat belt, is distracted while driving, is impaired due to alcohol or drugs, or speeding. As the father of two sons, I understand the role we, parents, play in making sure our children are safe drivers and that they make wise choices behind the wheel.

Here is a sobering statistic. Young drivers, age 16-24, were involved in 19 fatal crashes (alcohol-related or otherwise) in May 2016, resulting in 20 fatalities. That means 20 people are not here today, living their dreams, because someone made a wrong choice.

I would say to the graduates celebrate your accomplishment but be wise. Don’t drink and drive. Use a designated driver or other modes like transit, light rail, taxi or Lyft/Uber. Wear a seat belt. Obey speed limits. Show your parents you listened to them; make wise choices.

This post originally appeared on ADOT Director John Halikowski's
LinkedIn page. He has led the agency since 2009.

By Doug Pacey / ADOT Communications

The wait is almost over.

On Friday, we’ll reveal the winners in our Safety Message Contest. We’ve invited the winners to come to our Traffic Operations Center and type their message into our Dynamic Message Sign system. The winning messages will appear on overhead signs Friday through Monday.

You can see the winners by checking our Facebook page around 11:30 a.m. Friday or by traveling state highways this weekend.

By the way, did you know that one contest entry has already appeared on our overhead signs? We’ll consider using others in the future, too.

By Doug Pacey / ADOT Communications

If you think you're seeing more motorcycles than usual on Phoenix freeways this weekend, that's because you probably are. Arizona Bike Week and Phoenix Bikefest are occurring through Sunday in Scottsdale and Peoria.

ADOT isn't involved with either event, but we're taking the opportunity to spread awareness about sharing the road with motorcycles. Many overhead signs, especially those on the Loop 101 Agua Fria and Pima freeways, will display this message:

This safety message sometimes elicits responses from drivers of cars asking that motorcycles make safety a priority too. The fact is, vehicle blind spots can hide motorcycles. But drivers of four- and two-wheeled vehicles alike must make safe driving a priority. Speeding is a leading factor in traffic fatalities involving cars and motorcycles.

For more information on motorcycle safety, visit the Arizona Motorcycle Safety & Awareness Foundation’s website.

By John Halikowski / ADOT Director

Time is money -- especially when you are a trucking firm with fresh produce and you face a border inspection. You know it is going to take time, and you know you must follow federal and state regulations before that produce gets delivered to warehouse distribution centers.

The Arizona Department of Transportation is continuing its efforts to host meetings, events and programs with transportation leaders, elected officials and heads of trucking firms in Arizona and Mexico on the importance of safety inspections. It is our goal to educate the trucking industry about how safety compliance can reduce inspection times and make roads safer.

With our innovative programs that make our border inspections move efficiently, the results show a direct impact on international commerce and Arizona’s economy. We are helping to improve the flow of commercial traffic while keeping Arizona highways safe.

In 2015, $30 billion in both imports and exports moved through the state’s border ports, supporting 100,000 Arizona jobs.

ADOT, in collaboration with our federal and state law enforcement partners, holds commercial vehicle industry days to provide information about safety regulations, permitting and the inspection process.

I commend our officers who conduct the safety inspections at our commercial ports of entry, in addition to making sure commercial vehicles follow federal and state regulations. It is in this spirit of cooperation and education that we see the connection between international commerce and safety.

This post originally appeared on ADOT Director John Halikowski's 
LinkedIn page. He has led the agency since 2009.

By Doug Pacey / ADOT Communications

Don’t rely on luck or four-leaf clovers to stay safe on St. Patrick’s Day.

If your plans include an evening out, have fun, but make smart decisions before getting in a vehicle. Designate a driver or call a taxi or rideshare service.

Did you know that alcohol-related crashes in Arizona historically spike on St. Patrick’s Day?

To promote smart driving decisions, ADOT will display this St. Patrick’s Day-themed safety message on Dynamic Message Signs statewide.

While leprechauns might be difficult to find, state and local law enforcement will be easy to spot. The Arizona Department of Public Safety will have an enhanced presence on highways, targeting impairment and other dangerous driving behavior, and the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is working with State Troopers, police officers and deputy sheriffs on a statewide DUI enforcement campaign.

By John Halikowski / ADOT Director

We don’t need an Academy or selfie-taking accountants to tell us who has the best safety message. We want YOU to tell us who has the best entry in ADOT’s safety message contest.

With more than 7,000 submissions, there are now 20 finalists that have advanced to the next round of the contest. From speeding and impairment, texting and seat belt use, to proper use of the HOV lane and general driving safety tips, you get to decide which two messages will appear on signs above Arizona’s highways.

With so many great submissions, ADOT expanded the number of finalists from 15 to 20 and increased the winners from one to two. The winning messages will appear on overhead signs one day each in April.

I commend the creativity displayed from those Arizonans who submitted entries in our safety message contest. We want our residents to be engaged in the conversations about transportation safety. It takes all of us to be good drivers, sharing the road and obeying traffic laws, so we can reduce fatal and serious-injury vehicle crashes.

Do vote by March 15 and I promise you won’t have to worry about wrong envelopes being opened with the winning message.

This post originally appeared on ADOT Director John Halikowski's
LinkedIn page. He has led the agency since 2009.

By Doug Pacey / ADOT Communications

Voting has begun.

Earlier this week, we revealed the 20 finalists and opened voting in our Safety Message Contest. Did your message make the cut?

Selecting the finalists wasn’t easy. It took close to a week to read through the nearly 7,000 submissions and whittle the list to 20 finalists. The list has variety – funny, punny and serious – and we think everyone will find something appealing.

Voting is open March 1-15 and we’ll announce the winners – the top two vote-getters will appear on overhead signs – in April.

If your entry didn’t make the list of finalists, there’s still a chance it can find its way to an overhead sign. We have already scheduled a contest entry related to an event this month to appear on signs in March and will consider others throughout the year.

By Doug Pacey / ADOT Communications

After launching our Safety Message Contest last week, we’ve spent most of the past few days sifting through thousands of clever entries.

The response has been so incredible -- we received 4,000 submissions in the first 24 hours -- that we're changing the contest rules. In a good way!

Instead of whittling down to 15 finalists, we'll select 20. And instead of displaying one winning message on Dynamic Message Signs, the top two vote-getters will appear on signs for one day each in April.

Haven’t entered your winning safety message yet? There’s still time! Submissions will be accepted at azdot.gov/signcontest until Sunday, Feb. 19.

When creating your message, follow these guidelines:

• Signs accommodate three lines and 18 characters, including spaces, per line
• #Hashtags, phone numbers and website addresses are not allowed
• Signs can’t accommodate emoji

In March, we'll post the 20 finalists to our website and let the public choose the winners.