Video

You probably don’t think much about drainage when you’re driving, but a well-designed drainage system can increase the lifespan of a highway and help keep the public safe. We’ll blog about how these systems are designed and maintained soon, but today we just want to give you a quick glimpse of the types of drainage solutions used on a project like the Loop 303/I-10 interchange.

Placing Portland Cement Concrete Pavement (PCCP) is one of the final steps involved when building a road, but it’s far from an afterthought…

We're headed into monsoon season (the official start is today) and those dusty, unpredictable storms are on their way...

At ADOT we always want to give drivers a warning of what’s coming up on the road ahead... Whether it’s an impending freeway closure or a new type of traffic signal, we try our very best to get the word out ahead of time so motorists know what to expect. But, sometimes something will impact our roads (and the ability to drive them) quickly and without much notice, making it all the more difficult to get the message out.

If you’ve ever driven between Arizona and Las Vegas, you’re probably pretty familiar with US 93. It’s the stretch of road traveled by countless motorists each day and it is in the midst of a major update.

Just last month we blogged about a project that’s under way on I-17 and SR 69 in Cordes Junction. So, maybe you’re wondering why we’re bringing it up again so soon … Well, we’re blogging about it today because we’ve got an awesome new video (see above) that details the entire project and shows footage from January when crews installed some precast girders – a milestone in the construction.

Remember this awesome time-lapse video showing the construction of a temporary bypass at Greenway Road and the Loop 303? Well, today we’ve got an even more in-depth look at how crews built the new intersection – complete with temporary barriers, fences and traffic signals – in just about 43 hours! (Take a look at the photos below for an amazing before and after aerial glimpse of the new bypass!)

We’re thankful for the approximately 1,570 volunteer groups who currently adopt an Arizona highway. It’s hard to believe, but roughly 335 of the groups have been volunteering for more than 10 years and of those, 50 have been with Adopt a Highway for more than 20 years!

Accommodating existing traffic is a key priority when ADOT builds a freeway … Depending on the project, that can mean working out a construction schedule that takes rush hours into account or hiring extra crews to flag and direct traffic through the site.

Before you can build a freeway, you’ve got to move a little dirt... Make that a LOT of dirt, especially in the case of the Loop 303 project under construction right now in the West Valley.

I-10 was closed most of the day and night last Wednesday after two tanker trucks collided near Chandler Boulevard south of downtown Phoenix. For hours, many drivers could see the resulting column of black smoke. Even more people saw footage and photos of the collision’s aftermath on the news and online.

Last month, as part of our Building a Freeway series, we told you about the massive underground support substructures that help give bridges strength. Next up in the series is an important -- but temporary -- structure that’s used as crews build a bridge, tunnel or even a box culvert.

Arizona isn’t known for its harsh, winter weather conditions, but that doesn’t mean we don’t see some considerable snowfall during our colder months.

When a new highway operation technician is hired by ADOT, they’ve got one year to complete some basic training …

You know when you drive under or over a freeway bridge that it’s a massive structure… There are the two abutments (the upright supporting structures at each end that carries the load of the bridge span), there are usually center columns or piers, and, of course, the girders and the bridge deck (the part you actually drive across).

They're typically headed to one of the country’s biggest tourist destinations -- the Grand Canyon. One of the main routes to the popular south entrance happens to be State Route 64, which takes motorists right through the middle of Tusayan (pop. 560). The small town gets a lot of pedestrian and vehicle traffic and understandably there have been some concern related to all the activity on SR 64.

Construction got started earlier this fall on a project that’s designed to bring some big improvements for a stretch of Interstate-10 in the Tucson area. The I-10 widening project from Ruthrauff Road to Prince Road will not only expand the freeway to four lanes in each direction, but will also reconstruct the Prince Road traffic interchange so the road will pass over the Union Pacific Railroad tracks and I-10. New landscaping and entrance and exit ramp improvements are also part of the plan.

Several miles of new HOV lanes opened earlier this week in Chandler and the West Valley … just in time for the Monday morning commute!

What are your thoughts on the possibility of a new transportation connection between Phoenix and Tucson? If you travel between these two major metropolitan areas, the Arizona Department of Transportation wants to hear from you!

When ADOT has a freeway to build, many steps must be taken long before any asphalt is paved. One of those initial tasks involves pre-wetting the soil, which entails pretty much exactly what you think it does … crews put sprinkler systems into place and water the dirt!