News

PHOENIX – There are approximately 150 business days left until Oct. 1, and the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division reminds customers to get the AZ Travel ID to make it through federal TSA airport checkpoints starting on that date.

“The clock is ticking and people need to get their AZ Travel ID,” said MVD Stakeholder Relations Manager Jennifer Bowser Richards. “We don’t want to see travel plans ruined because flyers don’t have an ID that the TSA will accept. That’s a very real risk for people who don’t get an AZ Travel ID.”

PHOENIX – Working to protect people around the country from fraud involving used cars, state investigators have broken up a major criminal operation based in the East Valley that illegally produced tens of thousands of titles for vehicles being sold in 42 states.

PHOENIX – It is going to be an especially busy next several months for Phoenix-area freeway improvement projects. And yes, that means closures are needed to accomplish the work.

Drivers should plan for weekend and overnight restrictions as the Arizona Department of Transportation’s current slate of construction and maintenance projects advances in a number of Valley areas.

PHOENIX – You’ve seen the unconventional traffic safety messages above Arizona highways on digital message boards. Beginning today, you’ll again have the opportunity to see your own message on ADOT’s Dynamic Message Signs.

That’s right; the Arizona Department of Transportation’s annual Safety Message Contest is back. Beginning today, messages can be submitted at azdot.gov/signcontest through Monday, March 2.

PHOENIX – The days of Commercial Driver License (CDL) customers only being able to go to a handful of MVD offices for those services are over.

The Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division now offers most CDL services at all full-time MVD locations statewide. Previously, CDL customers were required to travel to a limited number of MVD locations.

PHOENIX – Three months after launching, the Arizona Department of Transportation’s Incident Response Unit has offered assistance nearly 4,000 times on Valley freeways, helping boost safety by getting traffic moving sooner after crashes.

In a first for ADOT, a new sponsorship by State Farm is helping the 14-member Incident Response Unit continue this important work, which ranges from setting up traffic control to moving vehicles involved in minor crashes to removing debris – even changing a flat tire here and there.

PHOENIX – An Arizona Department of Transportation training program that helps members of economically disadvantaged groups launch careers in transportation construction is getting ready to hold its first session just for women.

By focusing the next two-week Construction Academy, to be held March 2-13 in Phoenix, ADOT’s On-The-Job-Training Supportive Services Program is helping address underrepresentation by women in the field. Women comprise about 9 percent of construction workers nationally, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

PHOENIX – With construction approaching on State Route 189 improvements in Nogales, an open house this week provides an opportunity to learn more about the $134 million project.

The Arizona Department of Transportation will hold an open house from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20, at Nogales High School, 1905 N. Apache Blvd. The project team will make a short presentation and then be available to provide information.

PHOENIX – Ruthrauff Road has closed at Interstate 10 in Tucson for nearly two years of construction on a modern interchange that will ease commutes and improve safety. 

I-10 exit and entrance ramps also are closed, with the exception of the westbound off-ramp, which remains open so motorists can access businesses along the frontage road.

Ruthauff Road remains open east of I-10, as does El Camino del Cerro west of the freeway. The Arizona Department of Transportation will maintain access to businesses near the workzone throughout the project.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation and partner agencies will hold an event Thursday, March 12, highlighting project opportunities to owners of small businesses and companies qualifying for the agency’s Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program.

The Grand Avenue (US 60) intersections at Bethany Home Road and Northern Avenue will be restricted until this summer for an improvement project that starts Wednesday night, Feb. 12.

PHOENIX – With 30 years of maintenance part of the public-private partnership behind the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway, taxpayers will face no additional cost to address spots next to some West Valley interchanges where the surface asphalt has deteriorated.

The Arizona Department of Transportation will hold freeway developer Connect 202 Partners accountable for repairing the problem and is monitoring these spots, which are next to some West Valley interchanges, to ensure the safety of drivers.

PHOENIX – While Wickenburg celebrates the 72nd Annual Gold Rush Days, the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division will join the festivities by reminding people to avoid a last-minute rush to get the AZ Travel ID.  The MVD mobile office will be in the parade route Saturday, February 15, with AZ Travel ID information displayed for the crowd.

PHOENIX – An open house will give Nogales-area residents an opportunity to learn more and ask questions about coming improvements to State Route 189 before work begins on a $134 million Arizona Department of Transportation project.

The open house will be from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20, at Nogales High School, 1905 N. Apache Blvd. The project team will make a short presentation and then be available to provide information.

PHOENIX – Over the weekend beginning the evening of Friday, Feb. 14, the Arizona Department of Transportation will close Ruthrauff Road at Interstate 10 for a two-year project to modernize the interchange serving a growing area of northwest Tucson.

ADOT will maintain access to area businesses throughout this project, which is creating a bridge carrying Ruthrauff Road over both I-10 and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks as well as widening the freeway.

PHOENIX – While providing a much-needed alternative to Interstate 10 through downtown Phoenix, the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway offers drivers a variety of distinctive designs and landscaping influenced by the natural beauty and history along its 22 miles.

The dawn of a new year also means tax season is bearing down and the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division is ready to help customers with 2019 fee and tax information.

Vehicle owners can go to www.servicearizona.com and quickly get their vehicle fee and tax information by clicking on the “Vehicle Fees/Taxes Paid 2019” link listed on the home page.  The service is free. 

PHOENIX – Though major restrictions aren’t set to begin until late winter or early spring, construction is set to begin Monday, Jan. 13, on an Arizona Department of Transportation project building a new interchange at Interstate 10 and Ruthrauff Road in northwest Tucson.

The completed interchange will reduce delays and improve safety on Ruthrauff Road and on El Camino del Cerro west of I-10 by carrying traffic over the freeway and Union Pacific Railroad tracks. The two-year, $129 million project also will widen the freeway.

PHOENIX – This week’s winter storms will have many desert dwellers heading to the high country to toss snowballs, make snow angels, sled, etc., etc. Have a great time if you’re among them, but leave prepared to spend extended time in frigid conditions and pack a fully charged cellphone and other safety essentials.