News

PHOENIX – For the next 10 days, eastbound drivers should watch for delays on the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway while construction crews continue placing rubberized asphalt on the central and eastern sections.

The Arizona Department of Transportation has taken advantage of lighter traffic during the current public health situation to extend hours for freeway construction and maintenance. In the past, most work has been limited to nights and weekends to limit traffic congestion.

PHOENIX – With springtime and warmer weather here, two White Mountains-area state highways reopened Wednesday, April 15, after being closed for the winter, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

State Route 261 runs from State Route 260 near Eagar to Big Lake, while State Route 273 goes from SR 260 to Sunrise Park and Big Lake.

State Route 473, running south from SR 260 on the White Mountain Apache Reservation, remains closed with Hawley Lake and the surrounding area closed to recreational use for the time being.

PHOENIX – As public safety and health continue to be the top priority in these unprecedented times, the Arizona Department of Transportation will hold a virtual public hearing and board meeting Friday, April 17, to continue collecting public comments for the 2021-2025 Tentative Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program.

PHOENIX – Freeway construction crews have a message for drivers tempted to speed when they find themselves on freeways that have lighter traffic these days: Slow down.

The Arizona Department of Transportation’s workers and contractors are continuing improvement projects on state highways while many people are at home during the current public health situation. Work continues on Interstate 10 in Phoenix and Tucson, on Loop 101 in the Phoenix area and elsewhere across Arizona, with ADOT able to expand the hours of some projects because of the lighter traffic.

PHOENIX – Arizona Highways celebrates the mining camps and military posts of the state’s frontier past with a new book that reveals the history of ghost towns for modern-day visitors.

Arizona Ghost Towns documents the fascinating past of 50 historic locales with stunning photographs from today and pioneer times.

PHOENIX – The replacement of an obsolete computer system will require a complete shutdown of all Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division services from 5 p.m. Friday, April 17, through Tuesday, April 21. 

This shutdown is a total interruption to all services provided at MVD offices, through Authorized Third Party providers and online at ServiceArizona.com.

PHOENIX – With many people staying at home during the current public health situation, lighter traffic has created an opportunity for the Arizona Department of Transportation to expand the times when construction and maintenance crews can advance improvement projects. 

ADOT typically does much of its major freeway work at night and on weekends to reduce the inconvenience for drivers. But with traffic lighter than normal, crews can start earlier and some projects are adding work on weekdays.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation is accelerating a project to widen and improve the Interstate 17 bridge over McConnell Drive entering Flagstaff by closing McConnell Drive until early May, followed by other restrictions through mid-August.

McConnell Drive is scheduled to be closed around the clock from Monday, April 13, through Friday, May 1. Beginning Saturday, May 2, McConnell Drive is scheduled to be closed between 5 a.m. and 7 p.m. daily through Sunday, May 31, while crews work on the next phase of the project. 

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has reallocated more than 2,600 N95 respirator masks to two state-operated assisted care facilities to help address a need for personal protective equipment during the current health situation.

ADOT delivered 1,440 masks to the Arizona State Veteran Home in Phoenix and 1,200 masks to the Arizona Pioneers’ Home in Prescott following a call for the protective gear from the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs and Governor Doug Ducey.

PHOENIX – Governor Ducey and the Arizona Department of Transportation today took action to help ensure critical supplies and goods Arizonans rely on can be transported more easily by temporarily waiving certain commercial vehicles regulations.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has temporarily reopened two long-shuttered northern Arizona rest areas to support truckers hauling essentials during the current public health situation.

The Parks Rest Area along Interstate 40 west of Flagstaff (milepost 182) and the Christensen Rest Area on Interstate 17 south of Flagstaff (milepost 324) offer parking, portable toilets and handwashing stations exclusively for commercial vehicle drivers.

PHOENIX – Motorists who use Interstate 10 near Prince Road in northwest Tucson should plan for about one month of overnight lane restrictions because of a pavement maintenance project, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation. 

The project will begin Sunday, April 5, as crews seal concrete pavement joints on both directions of I-10. Work is scheduled Sundays through Thursdays, from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.

PHOENIX – Drivers traveling west on the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway may experience delays from Thursday night through Monday morning as Arizona Department of Transportation crews continue paving in the mountain pass area.

The left two lanes of westbound Loop 202 will be closed between 17th Avenue and Estrella Drive from 10 p.m. Thursday, April 2, until 10 p.m. Friday, April 3. The right three lanes will then be closed in the same area until 5 a.m. Monday, April 6. In addition, the westbound on- and off-ramps at Vee Quiva Way will be closed.

Why is it important for you to get around to responding to the 2020 Census? One of the many reasons is especially important here at the Arizona Department of Transportation: Census results affect how we and others help you get around.

At the Traffic Operations Center, ADOT and AZDPS work together to alert motorists to potential dangers, mobilize ADOT personnel and state troopers, and make sure the public knows what’s up via the Arizona Traveler Information site (az511.gov), the 511 phone system and social media.

PHOENIX – In partnership with Flagstaff, the Arizona Department of Transportation is starting a project this week to improve traffic flow and add capacity for bicycles and pedestrians where Fourth Street passes over Interstate 40.

The Fourth Street bridge, which is currently one lane in each direction, will be replaced with a wider bridge offering two lanes in each direction, a center turn lane and a protected path for bicycles and pedestrians on one side and a sidewalk on the other. 

PHOENIX – The photographers who captured the earliest images for Arizona Highways magazine were tasked only with documenting road conditions, yet their artistic flair meant the scenery overpowered many views of humble, unpaved byways.

A worldwide audience eventually marveled at the publication’s photos after it evolved from an engineering newsletter into a magazine featuring Arizona icons like the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley and saguaro-studded landscapes.

PHOENIX –  Rockfall has closed State Route 88 just west of State Route 188, blocking access between Roosevelt Lake and Apache Lake, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation. The closure is at milepost 242, which is 2 miles west of Roosevelt.

There is no estimated reopening time; however, this is expected to be an extended closure while crews remove earth and rocks.

PHOENIX – For many drivers in the southwest Valley, flooding on the Salt River meant a bridge at 51st Avenue was their primary option to cross the river. But with the opening of the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway three months ago, drivers have a new all-weather option with twice as many lanes to move traffic.

Heavier normal winter rain prompted Salt River Project releases from dams east of Phoenix recently, closing riverbed crossings at 67th and 91st avenues this week. There is no indication when those crossings will reopen.

PHOENIX – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has announced that the deadline for air travelers to get a driver license or ID that complies with the REAL ID Act, including the AZ Travel ID, has been pushed back a full year to Oct. 1, 2021. 

With this delay and the need to reduce customer traffic at MVD locations during this public health situation, all current AZ Travel ID appointments have been canceled. Customers are urged to delay getting an AZ Travel ID until the coronavirus situation has passed to reduce customer traffic at MVD offices.