In addition, four major projects will move forward in the Pima County region and 15 major projects will advance in the Maricopa County region using, in part, funding generated by those regions.
The board wrestled with some tough choices about how to fund major projects and still preserve the existing highway system.
This year, the proposed projects for Greater Arizona drew a tremendous amount of interest and comment from communities across Arizona. Due to a major decline in transportation funding, the Arizona Department of Transportation must reduce the 2014-2018 Five-Year Program by a total of $350 million statewide and will move toward preserving existing highway infrastructure. This significant reduction in funding means fewer expansion projects will move forward, particularly in Greater Arizona.
As part of the public comment process for the Five-Year Program, ADOT developed three scenarios to address how to fund projects in Greater Arizona with limited money. Scenario A focused on allocating the majority of funding to preservation. Scenario B focused on moving major projects forward with the available funding. Scenario C focused on a combination of preservation and major projects. Ultimately, the board adopted a modified version of Scenario C.
Projects for Greater Arizona during the 2014-2018 Five-Year Program.
• State Route 89, Deep Well Ranch Road to South Chino Valley: On June 14, the board voted to accelerate this highway widening project from FY 2014 to FY 2013, placing it in the current Five-Year Program. This is a $25 million project that will be funded with unexpended money from other ADOT highway projects.
• Interstate 10, Ehrenberg Port of Entry, Phase One: $8 million allocated in FY 2014 for technology improvements.
• US 95, Fortuna Wash Bridge Construction: $1.5 million allocated in FY 2014 for design and $13.5 million allocated in FY 2015 for construction.
• State Route 260, Lion Springs Section: Will be reduced from $40 million to $5 million, which will be allocated in FY 2018 for design work on this widening project. The $35 million previously allocated for this project will now go toward pavement preservation.
• US 60, Silver King Section and Superior Streets: $45 million accelerated from FY 2016 to FY 2015 for this widening project.
• State Route 260, Interstate 17 to Thousand Trails: $4 million allocated in FY 2014 for scoping and $62 million allocated in FY 2016 for construction of this widening project.
The public comment period for the 2014-2018 Five-Year Program began on March 8 and ended on May 17. During this time, public hearings were held in Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff and ADOT received 1,300 comments from people across Arizona who expressed their views about what projects should be included in the Five-Year Program.
The Five-Year Program serves as a blueprint for future projects and designates how much local, state and federal funding is allocated for those projects. It is divided into three sections: the Maricopa County region, the Pima County region and the 13 counties that make up Greater Arizona.
The Five-Year Program is updated annually. Each program begins with a long-range visioning process, moves into a more realistic 20-year plan and finally yields each Five-Year Program. The program is developed by working closely with local planning organizations and community leaders to identify ready-to-construct or design projects.
Funding for the Five-Year Program is generated by the users of transportation services, primarily through the gasoline tax and the vehicle license tax.