Grand Canyon Times

The Arizona Department of Transportation is seeking the public’s input on its latest program to improve and maintain the state’s highway system during the next five years, a proposal that includes several major widening projects while also improving pavement conditions.

The public comment period begins today on ADOT’s 2024-2028 Tentative Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program, a $7.7 billion program that will invest $2.6 billion in pavement and bridge preservation projects across Arizona over five years, upgrading pavement in poor or fair condition.

Additionally, the program allocates $669 million for projects that widen highways or improve interchanges. Those projects include:

• Widening Interstate 17 north of Phoenix from Anthem Way to Black Canyon City, plus adding flex lanes from Black Canyon City to Sunset Point. The five-year program contains $83.6 million toward the ongoing project.
• Widening the Gila River bridges between Phoenix and Casa Grande. The program dedicates $50 million toward the project in 2023 and is a key step toward ADOT’s goal of widening I-10 to three lanes in each direction between Phoenix and Tucson.
• Constructing the first phase of the I-40/US 93 West Kingman interchange. The program includes a total of $160 million for construction in 2024 and 2025.
• Widening and improving US 93 between Wickenburg and I-40 in Kingman, including expanding three segments of the highway from two to four lanes. The US 93 improvements total $263.9 million and include widening projects near Cane Springs in 2024, near Wickenburg in 2026 and another widening project near Big Jim Wash in 2027.
• Widening the last two-lane section of State Route 260 in the Lion Springs area. The program includes $125 million for construction in 2026 and would complete ADOT’s goal of completing a four-lane divided highway along the entire SR 260 corridor.

Other program highlights include $469 million for projects that improve highway safety, efficiency and functionality, such as smart technology or adding shoulders. ADOT’s five-year program is developed by working closely with local governments and regional transportation planning organizations to prioritize projects that are ready to build or design.

Funding for the program is generated by users of transportation services, primarily through gasoline and diesel fuel taxes and the vehicle license tax. Both the Maricopa and Pima county regions have independent revenue streams established through voter-approved sales tax increases that allow for more expansion projects to take place. 

The I-17 and I-10 widening projects are able to advance through ADOT’s partnership with the Maricopa Association of Governments, the regional planning agency that has committed some of the funds for those improvements.

The public comment period for the 2024-2028 Tentative Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program ends at 5 p.m. June 1. The State Transportation Board is expected to consider formal action on the program at its June 16 meeting.

The complete report is available at azdot.gov/tentative5year for review and comment. ADOT welcomes feedback via an online form that will be available at azdot.gov/tentative5year, by email at fiveyearconstructionprogram@azdot.gov(link sends e-mail) and by phone at 855.712.8530.

Original source can be found here.