News

MESA – The Arizona Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration have scheduled two open house meetings on Monday, Nov. 6, to allow the public to learn about and share input on alternatives for improving US 60X, the Mesa roadway known locally as Main Street/Apache Trail.

The meetings are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 6, at:

Red Mountain Library
635 N. Power Road
Mesa

PHOENIX – Northbound Seventh Avenue remains narrowed to one lane at the Interstate 17 interchange in Phoenix, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

Drivers should consider using other northbound routes in the area approaching downtown Phoenix, including Central Avenue and Seventh Street.

The northbound Seventh Avenue left turning lanes to the northbound I-17 on-ramp are closed. The southbound I-17 off-ramp also is restricted with one of two left turn lanes to northbound Seventh Avenue closed.

PHOENIX – A national industry group has honored the Arizona Department of Transportation’s $30 million rehabilitation of an Interstate 15 bridge through the rugged Virgin River Gorge in far northwestern Arizona.

The American Public Works Association selected the Virgin Bridge No. 6 improvement, completed last year, as Project of the Year among transportation projects worth between $25 million and $75 million, with ADOT as the managing agency, Pulice-Wadsworth Brothers Joint Venture as primary contractor and Jacobs as primary consultant.

PHOENIX – You can buy lots of things online, at a swap meet or from a friend, but one thing you should never find is a vehicle disability plate or placard because of the strict controls placed on who’s eligible to get one.

The Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division was recently alerted to a social media post by a Phoenix-area resident attempting to sell a relative’s placard online. The ADOT Office of Inspector General has an ongoing investigation into that incident in which the placard was offered for sale for several hundred dollars.

PHOENIX – Construction of the first traffic interchange in the Laveen area for the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway will require an extended full closure of Elliot Road at 59th Avenue beginning Monday, Oct. 23.

The closure, which will last through March 2018, will allow crews to accelerate construction of one of the 13 interchanges needed for the South Mountain Freeway.

In order to build the Elliot Road traffic interchange, construction crews will complete the following work:

PHOENIX – Since it began showcasing the state’s beauty and diverse landscapes, Arizona Highways has been a collector’s item. People around the country have not only subscribed but held on to the monthly issues of the magazine, produced by the Arizona Department of Transportation, so they could go back again and again to look at the photos and read about the history.

Now Arizona Highways needs a little help finding a piece of its history, in this case a December 1930 issue to add to its digital collection.

PHOENIX ‒ The Sacaton Rest Area on Interstate 10 south of the Phoenix area is scheduled to close Wednesday, Oct. 18, for a $4 million renovation that’s expected to take six months, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

Work planned for the rest area, located on both westbound and eastbound I-10 between Casa Blanca Road and State Route 387 near Casa Grande, includes upgrades to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, replacing a water line, replacing the septic tanks and sewer lines, upgrading the electrical and mechanical systems, and painting.

PHOENIX – Commuting between the West Valley and downtown Phoenix can be a grind due to heavy traffic on Interstate 10. With construction underway on connections between I-10 and the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway, there’s even more reason for motorists to consider alternative ways of getting where they need to be.

PHOENIX – Northbound Seventh Avenue is narrowed to one lane at the Interstate 17 interchange in Phoenix, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

Drivers should consider using other northbound routes in the area approaching downtown Phoenix, including Central Avenue and Seventh Street.

The northbound Seventh Avenue left turning lanes to the northbound I-17 on-ramp are closed. The southbound I-17 off-ramp also is restricted with one of two left turn lanes to northbound Seventh Avenue closed.

GOODYEAR – Major work on the freeway interchange connecting Interstate 10 and Loop 303 in the West Valley has been completed.

The Arizona Department of Transportation has now opened all four of the new ramps that allow drivers to make direct connections between I-10 and Loop 303. Three ramps were opened to traffic Sunday night, Oct. 8. Construction crews on Monday opened the fourth ramp, which connects westbound I-10 to southbound Loop 303.

A new section of Loop 303 traveling under I-10 between Thomas Road and Van Buren Street in Goodyear also is open to traffic.

PHOENIX – Whether it’s communicating with travelers during a freeway closure or pointing out that a chair obstructing travel lanes looks like it belonged to Archie Bunker, the Arizona Department of Transportation’s Twitter account is there for motorists night and day, 365 days a year.

Since @ArizonaDOT launched in 2008, more and more Arizonans have turned there to get answers and to share information, making it the most-followed state government Twitter handle in Arizona.

PHOENIX – On several hot summer mornings, biologists dressed in hiking gear searched crannies along ridges in the southwest corner of the South Mountain Park/Preserve. Their mission: finding and then relocating the elusive chuckwalla.

These large lizards, which are common in the U.S. Southwest and northern Mexico, include the orange-tailed males that are unique to the South Mountain Park/Preserve. While most animals flee when threatened, chuckwallas wedge themselves deep in cracks between rocks.

PHOENIX – While lane restrictions on southbound State Route 87 have been lifted, drivers headed to Payson and the Mogollon Rim area should continue to budget extra travel time as the northbound lane restriction continues near Slate Creek while crews continue to rebuild the right lane.

This critical Arizona Department of Transportation safety project is expected to be completed this fall.

PHOENIX – A criminal investigation by the Arizona Department of Transportation led to the arrest of the owner of a former Authorized Third Party business in the Valley who fraudulently used vehicle titles to obtain loans from banks and other institutions.

PHOENIX – Crews will be removing concrete barriers on southbound State Route 87 tomorrow near Slate Creek after completing repairs, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

The removal of the barriers will require the closure of the southbound lanes for 20-minute intervals between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Drivers headed to the Valley from the Mogollon Rim area should budget extra travel time and be prepared for delays.

Northbound restrictions will remain in place while crews finish rebuilding the right lane.

PHOENIX ‒ Thanks to some creative thinking several years ago at the Arizona Department of Transportation, those blue logo signs along state highways are doing much more than helping you find a restaurant, gas station or hotel. They’re helping fund highway improvements while offering businesses a cost-effective way to promote themselves.

PHOENIX – To improve safety and reduce the chance for rockfalls, the Arizona Department of Transportation will be starting a rock removal project on State Route 87 7 miles north of the State Route 260 junction on Monday, Sept. 25.

Drivers should budget extra travel time for moving through the 2-mile project area between mileposts 285 and 287. A pilot car will be in place to guide traffic through the work zone. Drivers should prepare for 20-minute delays.

PHOENIX – Arizona sometimes likes to do things differently – like having a Motor Vehicle Division instead of a Department of Motor Vehicles.

But what might seem like a simple name difference can lead the unsuspecting to unauthorized websites and scams when they’re simply searching for ways to do business online with the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division.

That’s because many people may reflexively do a web search for the “Arizona DMV” or something similar, and that can lead them to websites that aren’t affiliated with the MVD.

TUCSON – Twenty-seven members of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe earned their certification to work as flaggers on tribal construction projects through a free Construction Academy sponsored by the Arizona Department of Transportation.

After completing a series of weekend courses, participants in the Pascua Yaqui Reservation Tribal Employment Rights Organization Construction Academy are now qualified to work on road projects on the reservation, located in the southwest Tucson area.

PHOENIX – State Route 366 has reopened on Mount Graham in southeastern Arizona after a six-week closure due to the danger of flooding and debris flows after the Frye Fire, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

The road, also known as Swift Trail, connects with US 191 about 20 miles south of Safford. It had been closed at Ladybug Saddle near milepost 131, but as of Thursday, Sept. 14, it’s open again to Columbine at milepost 143.