News

PHOENIX – A day of location scouting, some astronomical knowledge and a compass were just what John Vermette needed for the perfect shot of Arizona’s scenic beauty: the Milky Way arching over Monument Valley.

Now that image will grace the pages of Arizona Highways magazine and ArizonaHighways.com as grand-prize winner of the magazine’s 2020 photography contest. Vermette’s photo was among 3,950 that amateur and professional photographers entered in the magazine’s 12th annual contest.

PHOENIX – Colossal Cave/Wentworth Road will close at Interstate 10 near Vail for about two months starting the night of Wednesday, May 27, for a bridge deck replacement project.

The Arizona Department of Transportation is taking advantage of lighter traffic during the current public health situation to complete the project ahead of schedule by replacing the entire deck at once rather than half at time. This approach allows major work on the project, which involves the bridge over eastbound I-10, to be completed in about two months rather than five months.

PHOENIX – Over the weekend, State Route 87 was closed for a couple of hours south of Payson when a brush fire caused by a person broke out along the roadway. While the exact cause isn’t known yet, the 5.5-acre Oak Fire demonstrates why motorists should secure tow chains, properly inflate tires, check brakes and take other steps to reduce the risk of starting a wildfire.

Just one spark can cause all kinds of problems.

In addition to putting lives and property at risk, fires that spread quickly in dry brush can lead to highway closures and inconvenience for motorists.

PHOENIX – In order to provide the most current information on the upcoming State Route 69 widening project between Prescott Lake Parkway and Frontier Village, the Arizona Department of Transportation has postponed a virtual public meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 20.

With a revised tentative Five-Year Construction Program before the State Transportation Board for their consideration and approval, ADOT decided to postpone the public information meeting until after June, when the board will approve a final version of the Five-Year Program.

PHOENIX – State Route 67 between Jacob Lake and the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park reopened Friday, May 15, after its annual winter closure, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

For information on when visitors will be able to access the North Rim, please visit the Grand Canyon National Park website at nps.gov/grca.

PHOENIX – An Arizona Department of Transportation project that will speed up international commerce, boost the economy and make Nogales traffic safer has begun near Arizona’s southern border.

To make way for improvements to State Route 189 (Mariposa Road) in Nogales, the 3.75-mile road that connects the international border with Interstate 19, crews have been clearing brush from the path of the first of two flyover ramps that will connect northbound SR 189 with northbound I-19. Construction is scheduled to start in earnest next week and take about 18 months.   

PHOENIX - Even though ADOT Motor Vehicle Division offices are serving a limited number of customers by appointment only due to the public health situation, customers aren’t limited in their ability to offer the gift of being an organ, eye or tissue donor. 

Since 2017, organ donation has been an option for online customers renewing their vehicle registration, a service that attracts about 250,000 customers a month. The online option of signing up to be a donor after applying for a driver’s license or ID dates back even longer.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation is seeking input on a project to build a freeway-to-freeway interchange between US 93 and Interstate 40 in west Kingman by hosting the agency’s first project-level virtual call-in public hearing.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has received a $36.2 million grant award from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration to help rural, tribal and intercity bus operators that have seen drops in ridership and revenues due to the current public health situation.

The funds, provided under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, are available to 22 rural transit providers for operating expenses and other pressing needs.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation is starting a project to reconstruct the St. Anselm Road bridge over Interstate 40 at milepost 348 between US 191 and the New Mexico state line in the community of Houck.

The bridge, located on the Navajo Nation, will be closed for the duration of the project. Drivers should also expect overnight closures of I-40 during portions of  the project, with traffic using the on- and off-ramps at the St. Anselm Road interchange to exit and re-enter the freeway. 

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has been granted environmental approval to continue moving forward with plans to improve an 11-mile section of Interstate 10  that includes the Broadway Curve.

PHOENIX – With Motor Vehicle Division offices currently limited to essential services that require in-person visits by appointment, the Arizona Department of Transportation strongly recommends that customers try going online, visiting Authorized Third Party offices or using the U.S. mail before seeking office appointments.

Due to the current public health situation, MVD offices cannot accept walk-in customers. 

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has extended higher weight limits for commercial trucks hauling critical supplies and goods that Arizona communities are relying on during the current public health situation.

Coordinating with Governor Ducey, ADOT in early April raised the gross weight limit for commercial vehicles to 90,000 pounds without the need for an overweight permit, up from the normal 80,000 pounds. That temporary measure, set to expire on April 30, has now been extended to the end of May.

PHOENIX – A section of Interstate 17 south of downtown Phoenix will be restricted starting this weekend through fall 2021 for a freeway bridge replacement project.

The Arizona Department of Transportation is set to begin a $13.5 million project to improve the I-17 bridge over Central Avenue.

The existing bridge, which first opened to traffic in 1962, will be replaced by a modern structure with increased clearance for commercial trucks traveling beneath it as well as Valley Metro's future Central Avenue light rail line.

PHOENIX – A project fast-tracked by the Arizona Department of Transportation will add 38 truck parking spaces to the Haviland Rest Area along I-40 west of Kingman.

Deemed an emergency project due to the current public health situation, the upgrade will allow more commercial drivers to rest as they travel long distances delivering essential supplies. The State Transportation Board awarded the $3.98 million project to Fann Contracting on Tuesday.

PHOENIX – An Arizona Department of Transportation program that helps truck drivers in Mexico better understand and prepare for safety inspections at the border is using technology to provide virtual training during the current public health situation.

PHOENIX – The upper, unpaved portion of State Route 366, which ascends Mount Graham into the Pinaleño Mountains southwest of Safford, reopened Friday, April 24, for the spring, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

SR 366, also known as the Swift Trail, begins about 5 miles south of Safford off of US 191.

Before heading off to enjoy the mountains, motorists should do the following:

Driver license holders with a past or current suspension: MVD is working with law enforcement to ensure your status is up to date in the new computer system. Please activate your account at azmvdnow.gov to verify your license status. 

Questions? Contact us at: azdot.gov/contact.  

PHOENIX – To help rural transit providers that have seen drops in ridership and revenues due to the current public health situation, the Arizona Department of Transportation has submitted a grant application to make $35.7 million in emergency federal funding available for operating expenses and other pressing needs. 

Is your child a future engineer? If she enjoys building bridges out of toothpicks, loves heavy equipment such as snowplows or gets a kick out of watching a controlled blast take out rock hanging above a roadway, you may be raising someone who will design, build, maintain or operate tomorrow’s transportation system.