News

PHOENIX – A lot of snow has fallen in the high country over the last week and with more forecast, the Arizona Department of Transportation wants to remind drivers who are heading north to leave prepared, be ready to spend extended time on the roads and never park along the highways to play in the snow.

ADOT reminds those heading to play in the snow that highway shoulders are for emergencies only and that parking on them to play in the snow is hazardous in a number of ways:

PHOENIX – Many Arizonans have reported receiving a scam text about their driver license needing to be updated.

This text did not come from the Arizona Department of Transportation and is a phony attempt to get people to hand over their personal identifying information. Do not open this text or any web address associated with it. This is a scam and you should never click on unsolicited or suspicious links in texts or emails.

PHOENIX – With a pair of storms moving through Arizona’s high country this weekend and early next week, the Arizona Department of Transportation advises drivers to consider delaying all but essential travel before heading north.

Waiting out a storm before traveling is the safest and most efficient option because it allows ADOT’s snowplows to clear the highways more quickly. A highway takes much longer to plow when it’s crowded with vehicles that shouldn’t be traveling on a roadway that’s slick with snow and ice.

PHOENIX – With snow falling in Arizona’s high country and more snow in the forecast, the Arizona Department of Transportation wants to remind drivers to be prepared before heading up north to play in the snow.

PHOENIX – For his ongoing work in support of growth of the border community in Nogales and Santa Cruz County, Arizona Department of Transportation Director John Halikowski has been recognized as a Friend of the Border by the Nogales Santa Cruz Port Authority.

The award was presented to Halikowski in December at a virtual meeting of the Port Authority board of directors and recognizes the efforts of ADOT under the leadership of Arizona Governor Doug Ducey and the Arizona-Mexico Commission.

PHOENIX – More than 1.5 million Arizonans have discovered the safest, fastest and most convenient way to complete services with the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division.

Since launching in April 2020, more than 1.5 million Arizonans have activated their free AZMVDNow.gov account, giving them access to the primary online portal for MVD customers. 

PHOENIX – The Meteor Crater Rest Area on Interstate 40 between Flagstaff and Winslow in northern Arizona has closed for a nearly $3.5 million renovation project that’s expected to be completed by the fall.

While closed to the traveling public, the rest area will remain open for commercial truck parking only. Message signs placed on I-40 in each direction approaching the rest area will advise drivers of this.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has signed an agreement with the developer team that will design and build the Interstate 10 Broadway Curve Improvement Project, the first major urban freeway reconstruction effort in the Valley.

ADOT finalized the $615,600,950 contract with the developer on Tuesday. Construction is scheduled to begin in mid to late 2021 and last up to four years.

PHOENIX – Members of the public have until Friday, Jan. 8, to share comments about the Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Sonoran Corridor that would connect Interstate 19 and Interstate 10 south of the Tucson International Airport.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation continues to make the trucking industry a priority during the public health emergency.

PHOENIX – Arizona Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General detectives and analysts have reviewed approximately 3,000 used and wholesale dealer license holders in an effort to discover potential activity such as dealers that have very little to no recent vehicle sales or have sales they are not licensed to make.

ADOT detectives are contacting license holders to ensure they are not misusing dealer plates or selling vehicles outside of the limits of their licenses, an illegal practice known as curbstoning.

PHOENIX – As part of a continued statewide effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and protect the most vulnerable, Governor Doug Ducey has issued an Executive Order deferring renewals of standard driver licenses with an expiration date between March 1, 2020, and Feb. 28, 2021, by one year from their original expiration date. 

PHOENIX – Motorists on State Route 366 (Swift Trail) near Safford should expect intermittent delays starting Monday, Jan. 4, to repair damage from the 2017 Frye Fire on Mount Graham.

The work is scheduled for up to two years on SR 366 between mileposts 118 and 140. Key elements of the project include:

PHOENIX – Perhaps you’ve seen the acrophobia-inducing public service announcements on TV? Maybe heard the rattlesnake’s rattle and hiss while listening to Pandora? Or saw one man distracting a one-ton bull in social media posts, all in the name of preventing distracted driving?

Three months after the Arizona Department of Transportation launched its distracted driving awareness campaign “Distracted Drivers Terrify Me,” aimed at reducing the number of people engaging in distracting behaviors while driving, the public outreach effort is still going strong.

For Immediate Release: Dec. 21, 2020
Contact: ADOT Public Information Office
[email protected]

South Mountain Freeway marks first anniversary
State’s largest freeway construction project opened in December 2019

PHOENIX – Just one year ago the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway opened to great fanfare, with a grand opening ceremony led by Governor Doug Ducey and other Arizona leaders a few days before it was opened to traffic on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2019.

PHOENIX –  Faced with the delicate balance of keeping people safe and the economy going during the pandemic, Governor Doug Ducey and the Arizona Department of Transportation made moves to assist the trucking industry to keep the supply of essentials like groceries and medical supplies flowing to Arizona communities.

In April, ADOT issued new rules that temporarily allowed commercial vehicles providing direct assistance to COVID-19 relief efforts to operate with a gross weight up to 90,000 pounds without an overweight permit. The normal limit is 80,000 pounds.

PHOENIX – Despite the obvious challenges 2020 presented to everyone, the year has been an important one for innovations from the Arizona Department of Transportation when it comes to service-oriented projects designed to make travel across the state safer and more efficient.

Those innovations came in all areas of Arizona and across every facet of ADOT’s business, including major projects, the Motor Vehicle Division, the Enforcement and Compliance Division and safety improvements.

PHOENIX – When commercial truckers purchase their permits for driving through Arizona online ahead of time or use a cashless method at the port of entry, they spend less time making payments and get on their way faster.

That’s one reason the Arizona Department of Transportation successfully implemented a pilot program to move to a fully-cashless permitting system. Now, after working with trucking companies that pay with cash to ensure they have enough time to convert to a cashless system, ADOT’s ports of entry intend to go fully cashless on Jan. 1, 2021.

PHOENIX – While 2020 presented many challenges, the Arizona Department of Transportation continued to serve drivers in northern Arizona by using different methods, including the innovative bridge slide, to improve bridges to keep cross-country commerce flowing and increase the mobility of local traffic.

PHOENIX – Several major bridge and intersection replacement projects in southern Arizona presented a big challenge for the Arizona Department of Transportation in 2020: How to replace existing structures or entire interchanges without closing highways on projects that last up to two years.

The agency applied several innovative approaches to do just that, keeping passenger vehicles and commerce moving while minimizing potentially disruptive restrictions and closures.