ADOT closes certain state routes for winter months

Taken early this year on I-40 near Flagstaff, this photo shows some
serious snowfall. Other Arizona routes that receive little traffic and
heavy snowfall are closed during the winter months.

Snow-covered, icy highways get swift attention from ADOT crews each winter, but some routes face factors so severe, that completely closing the road down for a few months is the best option.

A handful of state routes are annually shut down because they’re located in areas where HEAVY snowfall is common. These routes typically see little traffic – so it makes sense for ADOT to use its resources to keep more heavily traveled highways open.

When ADOT closes a road for the winter, maintenance crews will set up barricades at the closure points and then drive the roads to make sure no vehicles are in the closed sections.

So far, a few routes have already been closed, or are scheduled to close within a few weeks …

Transportation decisions driven by traffic counts

An ADOT tech checks out a continuous traffic counting station.

You’d be amazed by how much there is to learn just by counting cars (yes, cars…not cards!)…

Traffic counts are exactly what the name implies – physical counts of the traffic on a particular road – and ADOT takes them at approximately 1,400 locations around Arizona.

These counts not only tell ADOT how many cars are traveling on the state’s transportation system, but the sophisticated equipment used also determines vehicle speed, weight and classification.

The result is a continual stream of numbers … lots and lots of numbers!

Numbers that ADOT traffic engineers use to make better, informed choices.

Think about it … it would be nearly impossible to design an effective freeway if you don’t know how many people are going to be driving on it. And, you can’t design a safe road if you don’t know the expected load the pavement’s going to have to handle day in and day out.

“This drives decisions,” said ADOT’s Assistant Director of Roadway Inventory Pradeep Tiwari. “It is a critical prerequisite to decision-making.”

Holiday travelers won’t face construction, but there is a restriction on SR 85 this Thanksgiving weekend

Click map for larger view.

If your Thanksgiving holiday plans include any travel this year, you are not alone.

Higher traffic volumes are expected on our state’s highways later this week as drivers hit the road for some time with family and friends (and a turkey dinner!).

While there will be no active construction on the state’s highways this holiday weekend, motorists planning on using State Route 85 in Gila Bend should be aware of some road restrictions.

ADOT is working on a $13 million safety and enhancement project at the intersection of SR 85 (Pima Street) and B-8 (Butterfield Trail Road).

The restrictions in place will limit traffic to one lane in each direction and may delay motorists making their way to San Diego or Rocky Point as well as Phoenix-bound travelers.

Drivers should allow extra travel time and plan ahead – see map for alternate routes. SR 85 travelers are advised to proceed through the project area with caution and pay close attention to signs and message boards.

To stay up-to-date with all the latest highway conditions around the state this holiday, visit the http://www.az511.gov/ or call 511.

Have a happy and safe holiday!

Overnight emergency repairs follow I-10 tanker collision

I-10 was closed most of the day and night last Wednesday after two tanker trucks collided near Chandler Boulevard south of downtown Phoenix.

For hours, many drivers could see the resulting column of black smoke. Even more people saw footage and photos of the collision’s aftermath on the news and online.

What most didn’t see was the effort it took to reopen the freeway less than 24 hours after the fatal crash, which not only snarled traffic during the morning rush hour, but also severely damaged the road.

Building a Freeway: Sand Jacks and False Work

Last month, as part of our Building a Freeway series, we told you about the massive underground support substructures that help give bridges strength.

Next up in the series is an important -- but temporary -- structure that’s used as crews build a bridge, tunnel or even a box culvert.

It’s called false work, and it is used to support the structure until the concrete gets its desired strength and the bridge can carry its own weight.

Imagine that you’re building a bridge out of popsicle sticks. Those sticks can’t support their own weight at first, so you might use some blocks to give it some support until your glue dries.

Those blocks are the basic equivalent to false work…

But now what happens when your bridge is complete and it’s time to take the false work out so you have a fully functioning bridge?

New snowplows on display for today's media event

Driving a snowplow is a lot harder than it looks …

Luckily, ADOT has about 395 employees trained and ready to operate the nearly 200 snowplows in Arizona’s fleet.

To give the public a better idea of what it takes to drive one of these machines, ADOT invited members of the local media over to a Phoenix equipment services yard this morning for an up-close look.

Reporters not only learned about ADOT’s winter storm prep, but they saw several plows on display and were even able to try out ADOT’s snowplow simulators.

You can see some of the stories HERE and HERE.

ADOT set for snowy season

Arizona isn’t known for its harsh, winter weather conditions, but that doesn’t mean we don’t see some considerable snowfall during our colder months.

In fact, areas up in the state’s high country already had their first snowfall this season and more is on its way. So, what better time to make sure you’re ready for the winter season ahead?

ADOT certainly is ready ... as part of the department’s winter safety operations, we remove snow and ice during and after storms to keep highways open for motorists and businesses. Our snowplows are serviced and ready, our operators are prepared and our maintenance yards are stocked with deicer materials and equipment!

Emergency Alert System being tested nationwide today at noon

This message appeared yesterday on several electronic
billboards around the state. The signs will be used again
today to notify people of the nationwide test of the EAS. 

Today at noon the Emergency Alert System (EAS) is being put to the test on a national level …

You’re probably already familiar with the EAS. It’s the same system typically used to broadcast emergency weather alerts on your television and radio (it starts out with a series of loud screeching sounds, followed by the important information).

It’s tested frequently on a local level, but this is the first time it will be tested everywhere all at once. That means every television station (including digital, cable and satellite audio) and radio station in the U.S. will test the system simultaneously.

The system plays a vital role if there’s ever a significant emergency where large numbers of citizens need to be informed quickly and this test ensures it is ready for any and all hazards.

ADOT’s role

ADOT will be testing out its Dynamic Message Signs by posting “EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM TEST IN PROGRESS” from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Dynamic Message Signs are an important tool and are already used by ADOT to get the word out on AMBER Alerts and other critical information.

ADOT's Approved Product List helps save time

Among the APL's many products, several sign products are
on the list.

You might say each ADOT road construction project is a sum of its parts …

After all, you can’t build a road or a bridge without materials like aggregate, cement, and other structural materials.

But did you know each of those components must adhere to certain specifications? Some of the requirements are spelled out at a state level, while others are determined by the Federal Highway Administration and American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

Because project engineers and contractors don’t have the time to evaluate all the materials and traffic control products on the market, the ADOT Research Center’s Product Evaluation Program is designed to assist them.

ADOT’s Research Center maintains the “approved product list” (APL), which contains products found suitable for use in highway construction in Arizona. The list is updated every month and contains products that have been evaluated and found acceptable by ADOT.

The approved products list is NOT comprehensive. It’s not an endorsement list, either.

Contractors can and do use products not on the list … those products just may require proof of third-party testing before it’s OK’d for use on a project.

ADOT Operator Academy provides authentic training for new technicians

When a new highway operation technician is hired by ADOT, they’ve got one year to complete some basic training …

Part of that includes learning how to use four pieces of heavy equipment, including:

• Loaders (a heavy-duty piece of machinery that can move a lot of dirt)
• Graders (a vehicle that uses a large “blade” to create flat surfaces)
• Skid Steers (like a smaller, speedier version of a loader)
• Dump truck (used to haul large amounts of material)

In the past, training has happened in a maintenance yard. Trainees would learn by moving piles of dirt from one side of the lot to another.

The newly hired techs were definitely learning how to use the equipment, but the situation was far removed from the “real-world” conditions they’d actually experience on the job.

So, when the opportunity came about to train the new techs at a Boy Scout camp in Northern Arizona (with real roads in need of repair), it seemed like a perfect partnership!

ADOT Blog marks 100th post

We started this blog back in April with a definite vision in mind…

Informing readers about ADOT projects, programs and services was certainly our aim, but we also wanted to give some insight on why and how we do things around here and maybe even highlight some cool facts about our state’s transportation system.

Here we are, 100 blog posts (and nearly 55,000 page views and 34,000 YouTube views) later, and we seem to be well on our way to achieving those goals.

We’re proud of the 100-post milestone and the direction we’re going, but there’s still a lot of road to cover!

So, before we get to work on the next 100 posts, we wanted to check in with our readers and get a little feedback from you...

Tell us (either here or on our Facebook page) about the types of stories and videos you want to see more of. Which stories have been the most helpful or interesting so far? What transportation questions haven’t yet been answered?

Most importantly, we just want to say thank you for reading! We really appreciate everyone who takes the time to visit (and comment on) our blog!

And to show our appreciation, we bring you the first-ever ADOT Blog Top 10 List…

Top 10 things to expect if you read all 100 posts on the ADOT Blog

10)  Seeing each of the eight freeway-sized ‘welcome to Arizona’ signs will become No. 1 on your bucket list
9)  You’ll start to develop several detailed theories on who (or what) decorates I-17’s mystery tree each year
8)  You’ll think oversize loads are as cool as we do!
7)  You’ll realize you, too, have a burning question about ramp meters (it has received the most questions of any post)
6)  You’ll want to watch and re-watch all our videos
5)  You will have no problem spotting the subtle differences between Clearview and Highway Gothic type faces
4)  It might take a few tries, but you’ll ace the driver license online practice test
3)  You’ll appreciate this
2)  You’ll finally know the secret to a clean I-10 tunnel
1)  You will be able to use ‘wattle’ in a sentence.