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No words can express the pain in my heart or the amount of tears I have cried. I opened this page three hours ago and just sat here staring. I could not bring myself to write about my feelings, but somehow I have convinced myself to do so, for the time being. The past 3 days have honestly been some of the worst times of my life and for me to say that it means a lot.
On Saturday morning I was taking my usual route to work however, when i approached 103rd and Northern the road was blocked and there were signs saying emergency scene. I could barely see ahead enough to tell something had happened on 107th and Northern which is right by my parents house. I tried to call my dad but had no success. I called the house phone and my mom answered, i told her i was calling to be sure my brothers and everyone was okay since I couldn't get close enough to the scene to be sure it wasn't any of their cars. She told me that they were in bed sleeping and everyone was accounted for. My dad returned my call a little while after asking if i had seen the accident and when I told him no he told me about how bad it was. We discussed how sad that was and ended our conversation shortly after. About two hours later my phone rings again and its my dad, I answered the phone and he doesn't even bother saying hello, he just asks if i had talked to my mom. I told him no and he proceeded to tell me that the accident was Ryan Stalker and his brother. My heart immediately stopped and no part of me, no matter how hard i tried, could muster up the words to confirm what i just heard. My dad had to gain my attention again and as soon as he asked if i heard what he said the tears just started uncontrollably running down my face. For one of the few times in my life i couldn't find my words. It's like my entire being just froze and when i finally came back to it i shattered. I immediately rushed to find my brothers, having not only an emotional but physical breakdown. I walked through the door expecting and hoping this to be some sort of sick joke. I quickly realized just how wrong I was. My brother sitting at the table, eyes swollen and tears flowing. Just when I thought my heart couldn't hurt anymore it shattered into a million more pieces. When I am typically the one with all of the words to help I find my tongue to be broken. I hugged my brother hoping to help but as soon as we embraced one another it was like we both wept the hardest we ever had. Knowing that someone else felt your pain, hurt and sorrow and there was nothing either of you could do for one another has been one of the worst realizations of my entire life. Ryan was not only a friend for over a decade but family. He grew up with both of my brothers and watched my son grow from the day he was born. He had a presence that was quiet but welcoming. He could blend in with any crowd but had such an amazing sense of humor that it was known he was around.
Now, here we are, in a blink of an eye and he is no longer with us. So much pain is felt, it is almost unbearable. The night following the accident we held a candle light vigil at the scene. Walking up to that spot was one of the hardest things i have ever done. Having to come to terms with the fact that all of this was real. Seeing broken and burned cd's, glasses, a cell phone. I quickly realized that I could no longer pray that it weren't real. I had the prof of the incident right in front of my eyes. The ashes from the vehicles right by my feet and shattered glass everywhere I turned. Again, tears. I soon learned that this was my body's way of releasing what little pain I could. For those minutes, i felt like the world stopped spinning and i had been there for weeks. As people started showing up and I watched their eyes survey the surrounding and the wave of pain come across their faces i could hear the sound of their hearts breaking. No one could seem to muster up the words to speak. At least one hundred people showed up to show their support to one another and let it be known that everyone was suffering. A community of people that have been raised together reunited in one of the most awful events possible. A candle light vigil is never an easy thing. People stand together, everyone full of pain but no one able to speak about it. The pain too fresh in every one's mind to even begin to think of how to heal. Everyone standing around not knowing what to do, seconds feel like years and the pain swells. As the time passed and people started leaving we realized it was now our turns to leave the scene. It took forever for anyone to turn and walk. We would take short shuffles to our car and quickly be at another stand still. Once we actually made the decision that we had to go it was like being stabbed with a knife where my heart used to be. Each step feeling heavier and heavier. Legs weak, heart hurting. A million times worse then walking up to the scene. Moving away
Earlier throughout the day i had listened to every one's tongue tied remarks. Things such as "he wouldn't want you to mourn" or "at least he was taken quick and not lying in a hospital bed." I'm not sure if i am the only one but these things infuriate me. First of all, "he wouldn't want you to mourn" this statement is ridiculous. Of course no one thinks about their death ahead of time and states "when I am gone do not cry" and if they do they cannot honestly expect that from anyone. There is so much hurt when you realize that you will never see a person again. When you realize that the person who was once at your house all the time will never walk thru that door again. You will never be graced with a smile or a smart remark you so often took for granted. So not mourning is not an option. Second, "at least he was taken quick..." ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! there is no sense of comfort or soothing in this statement. I cannot help but imagine what their bodies went thru at the time of impact. About what an awful and horrific thing that must have been. Worst of all about the pain and torture they were put thru if God forbid they weren't "taken quickly". Quite frankly i think everyone is full of it. There is no easy way for someone to "go". Standing surrounded by hurt people quickly made me realize that all of the suffering i was going thru was felt by so many.
I have found myself driving in circles, crying uncontrollably and just being pissed at the world. "Important" conversations carried on are tuned out, fixed gazes on things with no meaning. I cannot come to terms with why bad things would happen to such good people. Being only 19 and full of intelligence and this is the card he was dealt. The fact that we are left here to suffer because someone so close to us is no longer here. The fact that we take life for granted and don't take advantage of the times we have to take two seconds and tell people we care and love them.
At first I was writing this as a tool to gather my thoughts. As a small hope that i can come to terms with what has happened but in doing so i realized that we all need each other. That we all need to know that there are others going thru the same emotions. Not everyone is on the same level but the stages of grief are there. Times like this should be used to strengthen bonds. We should be sharing our stories of the happy times to help each other try to over come the bad. We should be mending bridges with those that have been broken. We should be extending hands and pieces of our broken hearts to each other in hopes that where one person is missing a piece ours can fill the void a like wise.
"When someone you love becomes a memory, the memory becomes a treasure. ~Author Unknown"
P.s. I am sure that i will have much more to say about this, but as for now i have gotten all i can out of myself for one night.
13 Mayıs 2012 Pazar
We Are Who We Are!
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People being fake is becoming a real peeve of mine. People putting words in my mouth and people talking nothing but shit. I am always one to say my feelings. I often get criticized for being too honest but I find that to be better then leaving myself open for people to interpret things for themselves. The main reason is because I don't want people to fear that I am talking about them. I want people to know how i feel without hearing it from someone else. Most people do not understand this and for that I do not care. If you do not have a good understanding of me within the first hour of meeting me then you will never know me.
With that being said, this whole "friendship" thing is ridiculous. I have become very cold towards a lot of people because people cannot take responsibility for themselves. It irritates me and I am sick of it. Do not call yourself my friend if you cannot hold up your end of the friendship.
I have deleted my facebook for the time being and i have decided to focus more on myself and my family. I recently made the decision to stop eating meat. I read an article about a product called "Pink Slime" and watched the movie "Food Inc." and it has completely turned me off to meat products. My adventure has only started about a week and a half ago and it has been a lot harder then i ever could've imagined. As a human i am definitely a creature of habit. I have chowed down a burger and not even thought about it until it was too late. I have found the key factor in this decision is asking questions. With other people preparing your food it has never been more obvious that the human race is so oblivious to what they put in their body. :( I am also back in the gym and very confident in myself. I have made the decision that enough is enough.
Kyden starts first grade in about three weeks. I am so happy for him to return to his friends but I am also so sad that he is growing up so fast. It hurts my heart to see babies and think that Kyden was once that little and now insists on being as independent as everyone else. I just want time to slow down.
Jordan and I are doing just as great as ever. We are definitely feeling the time crunch of this wedding with having less than 4 months to go. I have entered the nightmare stage and had dreams of forgetting my garter and my veil and having no where to go to buy one. Talk about a scary feeling. I am going to have to make sure that I have everything packed well before the big day.
Sorry for all of the rambling. I just havent updated anything on here in quite sometime and decided to do so today. I will make a much better effort of doing so in the future. :)
With that being said, this whole "friendship" thing is ridiculous. I have become very cold towards a lot of people because people cannot take responsibility for themselves. It irritates me and I am sick of it. Do not call yourself my friend if you cannot hold up your end of the friendship.
I have deleted my facebook for the time being and i have decided to focus more on myself and my family. I recently made the decision to stop eating meat. I read an article about a product called "Pink Slime" and watched the movie "Food Inc." and it has completely turned me off to meat products. My adventure has only started about a week and a half ago and it has been a lot harder then i ever could've imagined. As a human i am definitely a creature of habit. I have chowed down a burger and not even thought about it until it was too late. I have found the key factor in this decision is asking questions. With other people preparing your food it has never been more obvious that the human race is so oblivious to what they put in their body. :( I am also back in the gym and very confident in myself. I have made the decision that enough is enough.
Kyden starts first grade in about three weeks. I am so happy for him to return to his friends but I am also so sad that he is growing up so fast. It hurts my heart to see babies and think that Kyden was once that little and now insists on being as independent as everyone else. I just want time to slow down.
Jordan and I are doing just as great as ever. We are definitely feeling the time crunch of this wedding with having less than 4 months to go. I have entered the nightmare stage and had dreams of forgetting my garter and my veil and having no where to go to buy one. Talk about a scary feeling. I am going to have to make sure that I have everything packed well before the big day.
Sorry for all of the rambling. I just havent updated anything on here in quite sometime and decided to do so today. I will make a much better effort of doing so in the future. :)
Children
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Since when did children become something that people can easily dispose of? I do not understand. There has been soooo many horrifying cases of child abuse and death recently that my mind is seriously blown. Don't get me wrong, I know that these things have always happened and the only reason we hear more about them now is the news. However, that doesn't make it any less sickening. People murdering children (whether its theirs or someone else's) and then disposing of their body like the bag of chips that they had for lunch.
The most recent one that blew my mind was the woman that had 5 babies by someone that she had an affair with. She delivered them in her own home and them stored their bodies in a closet. She put them in containers, coated them in concrete and many other things. Her husband didn't think she was ever pregnant and the only reason they found out about this was because their teenage daughter found the remains of these babies in the closet. This woman is just sick and wrong. Not one but 5?! All babies were thought to be full term so she has been doing this for between 4 and 5 years?! She didn't learn not to get pregnant after the first?! THIS IS JUST CRAZY! I do not understand how people process these thoughts and then act on them.
The story of the 10 year old being stuffed in a locker by the mercy of what were supposed to be her guardians and she dies. If you do not want a child give them away, that should not be a hard thing when it is so easy for you to treat a child so poorly. It's said that she was put in this container because she took some sort of food and ate it. Maybe if she was fed correctly then that wouldn't have happened, and since when did putting a child in a small container become a form of punishment. Four adults are responsible for this yet none of them had enough sense to not do this to begin with? Neighbors had seen the abuse happening but none of them said anything? In my opinion they are just as responsible and should be in trial right along with the other four adults. Being responsible for a child doesn't mean that you are free to abuse them as you please. There are many options for that child and death is not anyone's right, even if that person is the care taker.
The well known Casey Anthony trial is another example. I DO NOT CARE WHO YOU ARE, WHEN YOUR CHILD IS MISSING FOR OVER A MONTH YOU DO NOT GO OUT AND PARTY. I am so sick of non parents saying "everyone has their own way of dealing with a loss". That is very true but not when it is about the loss of your own child. People also say "well she was young, maybe she just couldn't handle it and wanted her life back". Umm, excuse me but I was 17 when i had my son and never once did I come close to ending his life! People make excuses for people and it's ridiculous. I never once, in my 6+ years of being a parent lost my child. I always know exactly where he is and heaven forbid, had I lost him, all Hell would have broken loose. I wouldn't be on a bar in a white t-shirt, instead I would be banging on everyone's door until the world was turned upside down. Once again, parenting is a huge responsibility and not everyone is cut out for it, but there are other options.
People could not be more selfish when choosing to end a child's life. You are not the only person connected to that child! Perfect example; when I worked in daycare there was a child in my class that passed away (somewhat similar to these above stories) and although I was only connected to her for a brief period in her short life, my heart still hurts for her. Imagine, if I, someone who only knew this little baby for a few short hours everyday, for a few short months hurt this bad, how do you think her family feels. Uncles, aunts, cousins and grandparents all bear an gaping hole for an innocent child they all loved. Expecting to watch her grow, graduate, marry and have her own beautiful children and only to lay her to rest unexpectedly. What a selfish, selfish thing that person did robbing so many people of that privilege.
http://www.myspace.com/video/nvasquez1/emily/17174514
Everyone needs to wake up and realize that children are a joy and not a punishment. A life is not to be taken lightly, it's to be cherished and nourished.
"Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future" - John F. Kennedy
The most recent one that blew my mind was the woman that had 5 babies by someone that she had an affair with. She delivered them in her own home and them stored their bodies in a closet. She put them in containers, coated them in concrete and many other things. Her husband didn't think she was ever pregnant and the only reason they found out about this was because their teenage daughter found the remains of these babies in the closet. This woman is just sick and wrong. Not one but 5?! All babies were thought to be full term so she has been doing this for between 4 and 5 years?! She didn't learn not to get pregnant after the first?! THIS IS JUST CRAZY! I do not understand how people process these thoughts and then act on them.
The story of the 10 year old being stuffed in a locker by the mercy of what were supposed to be her guardians and she dies. If you do not want a child give them away, that should not be a hard thing when it is so easy for you to treat a child so poorly. It's said that she was put in this container because she took some sort of food and ate it. Maybe if she was fed correctly then that wouldn't have happened, and since when did putting a child in a small container become a form of punishment. Four adults are responsible for this yet none of them had enough sense to not do this to begin with? Neighbors had seen the abuse happening but none of them said anything? In my opinion they are just as responsible and should be in trial right along with the other four adults. Being responsible for a child doesn't mean that you are free to abuse them as you please. There are many options for that child and death is not anyone's right, even if that person is the care taker.
The well known Casey Anthony trial is another example. I DO NOT CARE WHO YOU ARE, WHEN YOUR CHILD IS MISSING FOR OVER A MONTH YOU DO NOT GO OUT AND PARTY. I am so sick of non parents saying "everyone has their own way of dealing with a loss". That is very true but not when it is about the loss of your own child. People also say "well she was young, maybe she just couldn't handle it and wanted her life back". Umm, excuse me but I was 17 when i had my son and never once did I come close to ending his life! People make excuses for people and it's ridiculous. I never once, in my 6+ years of being a parent lost my child. I always know exactly where he is and heaven forbid, had I lost him, all Hell would have broken loose. I wouldn't be on a bar in a white t-shirt, instead I would be banging on everyone's door until the world was turned upside down. Once again, parenting is a huge responsibility and not everyone is cut out for it, but there are other options.
People could not be more selfish when choosing to end a child's life. You are not the only person connected to that child! Perfect example; when I worked in daycare there was a child in my class that passed away (somewhat similar to these above stories) and although I was only connected to her for a brief period in her short life, my heart still hurts for her. Imagine, if I, someone who only knew this little baby for a few short hours everyday, for a few short months hurt this bad, how do you think her family feels. Uncles, aunts, cousins and grandparents all bear an gaping hole for an innocent child they all loved. Expecting to watch her grow, graduate, marry and have her own beautiful children and only to lay her to rest unexpectedly. What a selfish, selfish thing that person did robbing so many people of that privilege.
http://www.myspace.com/video/nvasquez1/emily/17174514
Everyone needs to wake up and realize that children are a joy and not a punishment. A life is not to be taken lightly, it's to be cherished and nourished.
"Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future" - John F. Kennedy
PLEASE TAKE AN ACTIVE ROLE!
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So, K is now a first grader. It saddens me to know how fast he is growing now that he has a school calendar to chart the days as they pass right by. This year he started the school year off from his dads house, however, I still had just as much anxiety as if he were here. We took him to school the first day of school so that I could take pictures and add them to his photo album. You could tell that he was nervous and unsure of whether or not he actually wanted to be there. With a playground full of children that he didn't recognize he decided he wanted to hang out with me and Jordan before the bell rang to call them all to class. Then, the moment I had be dreading, the ringing of the bell. I walked with Kyden to find his teacher and showed him where he was supposed to line up in order to go inside. I didn't want to be too much of a pest so once he was in line I kissed him goodbye and told him to have an amazing first day. I had to quickly turn around because I knew the tears were coming. Jordan and I were walking back to the car and all I could do was let the single tear run down my face. It saddened me to know how quickly he was growing. I wanted my little baby back. The one that needed me and begged for me to rock him to sleep every night, the one that only found comfort in my touch. Now he was off in school learning and achieving so that he could make me the proud mother I have always been. I called him at his dads house to check and find out how his first day went. He was in no mood to talk. He gave me one word answers and when I asked him if he wanted me to come have lunch with him he quickly brushed me off. I reminded him to get a good night sleep and told him I would speak with him tomorrow. He told his aunt that night that he was just really tired from the long day of school. Mind you, he attended Kindergarten at the same school but it was only halfday (a little less than 3 hours) and he now attends full day (7 hours).
The next morning I called to ask him if he would like me to come have lunch with him or if he would rather me wait and with excitement in his voice he told me that he wanted me to come there that day. So I called the office and they told me the time he was set to have lunch. I arrive 5 minutes early, sign in and take a visitor sticker. The woman at the front desk speaks to me like I'm a child and tells me that I "still have 4 minutes and I need to take a seat" *I know I'm a young mother but I do not need to be treated like a child* So I wait the 4 minutes and head to the cafeteria. I find Kyden and he is just starting to pull out his lunch that he brought to school with him. I catch a glance at the clock and it reads 11:03. So I sit down and try to make conversation with him about what he has learned thus far. He is very short and tells me that they have started talking about math. K is always very talkative. We make it a point to always sit down together at dinner time and talk about what we have done that day so for him to not talk is a little concerning to me. There are teachers yelling at students and some crazy lady blowing a whistle to gain the attention of a room full of eager children. I don't know about you but I did not put my child through obedience school like a dog so when I send him out the door for an education I do not want others teaching him as such. K is still not very talkative but I try to reason it due to the fact of it's still a new school year. Teachers are now releasing the children out to recess to go play. Releasing is the wrong word, it was more of a push or a shove in the non physical way. I look over to K and he hasn't hardly finished his lunch and is frantically putting his stuff back into his lunch box. I told him "If you are not finished eating you need to stay here and continue eating, you have a full day ahead of you still." There is a little girl on my other side who over hears me and pulls her food back out of her lunch sack and continues to eat. I take notice of what a great lunch someone had packed for her. Gold fish, yogurt, a sandwich and some grapes.K insists that he is done eating after finishing a few more bites and he is ready to go outside. So we pack up his lunch and step away from the table. As soon as we do a teacher comes over to the little girl and tells her "You have two minutes to pack up and go outside". We are now the last table to leave the cafeteria and as I glance at my watch I realize that it is only 11:18. 15 minutes!! THAT'S all the time these first graders are given to eat, 15 MINUTES?!
First of all, I do not even eat in 15 minutes so I wouldn't expect that from a 6 year old. K and I have a 20-30 minutes drive in the morning. Therefore, he has 4 hours from breakfast until lunch and 5 hours from lunch until school is out. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to give a bunch of 6 year olds 15 minutes to eat?! This food is what fuels their body's and mind's. Then teachers are mad when they have a short attention span.
I went to the Peoria School District and spoke to one of the people in administration. He told me that all of my concerns were very valid and definitely needed to be brought to the attention of the school. So the Vice Principal gave me some half assed follow up phone call and K came home today telling me that he didn't have enough time to eat because it was time to go outside. My biggest concern in this whole ordeal is about children like that little girl that sat to my right that day. When she goes home with a 1/4 eaten lunch and an empty stomach her parents are going to think that she is just being picky and they may stop sending her with such a great lunch since she appears to be wasting it. What if by the time this unacceptable situation gets fixed they are sending her smaller lunches. She would then have the appropriate time to eat but nothing to fill her stomach for the long day ahead of her.
My whole point of this blog is to encourage you to play an active role. People cannot just expect everything to be okay, things like this need to be acknowledged and the only way for that to happen is for us, as parents, to follow up and check in on those who we trust our children to.
The next morning I called to ask him if he would like me to come have lunch with him or if he would rather me wait and with excitement in his voice he told me that he wanted me to come there that day. So I called the office and they told me the time he was set to have lunch. I arrive 5 minutes early, sign in and take a visitor sticker. The woman at the front desk speaks to me like I'm a child and tells me that I "still have 4 minutes and I need to take a seat" *I know I'm a young mother but I do not need to be treated like a child* So I wait the 4 minutes and head to the cafeteria. I find Kyden and he is just starting to pull out his lunch that he brought to school with him. I catch a glance at the clock and it reads 11:03. So I sit down and try to make conversation with him about what he has learned thus far. He is very short and tells me that they have started talking about math. K is always very talkative. We make it a point to always sit down together at dinner time and talk about what we have done that day so for him to not talk is a little concerning to me. There are teachers yelling at students and some crazy lady blowing a whistle to gain the attention of a room full of eager children. I don't know about you but I did not put my child through obedience school like a dog so when I send him out the door for an education I do not want others teaching him as such. K is still not very talkative but I try to reason it due to the fact of it's still a new school year. Teachers are now releasing the children out to recess to go play. Releasing is the wrong word, it was more of a push or a shove in the non physical way. I look over to K and he hasn't hardly finished his lunch and is frantically putting his stuff back into his lunch box. I told him "If you are not finished eating you need to stay here and continue eating, you have a full day ahead of you still." There is a little girl on my other side who over hears me and pulls her food back out of her lunch sack and continues to eat. I take notice of what a great lunch someone had packed for her. Gold fish, yogurt, a sandwich and some grapes.K insists that he is done eating after finishing a few more bites and he is ready to go outside. So we pack up his lunch and step away from the table. As soon as we do a teacher comes over to the little girl and tells her "You have two minutes to pack up and go outside". We are now the last table to leave the cafeteria and as I glance at my watch I realize that it is only 11:18. 15 minutes!! THAT'S all the time these first graders are given to eat, 15 MINUTES?!
First of all, I do not even eat in 15 minutes so I wouldn't expect that from a 6 year old. K and I have a 20-30 minutes drive in the morning. Therefore, he has 4 hours from breakfast until lunch and 5 hours from lunch until school is out. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to give a bunch of 6 year olds 15 minutes to eat?! This food is what fuels their body's and mind's. Then teachers are mad when they have a short attention span.
I went to the Peoria School District and spoke to one of the people in administration. He told me that all of my concerns were very valid and definitely needed to be brought to the attention of the school. So the Vice Principal gave me some half assed follow up phone call and K came home today telling me that he didn't have enough time to eat because it was time to go outside. My biggest concern in this whole ordeal is about children like that little girl that sat to my right that day. When she goes home with a 1/4 eaten lunch and an empty stomach her parents are going to think that she is just being picky and they may stop sending her with such a great lunch since she appears to be wasting it. What if by the time this unacceptable situation gets fixed they are sending her smaller lunches. She would then have the appropriate time to eat but nothing to fill her stomach for the long day ahead of her.
My whole point of this blog is to encourage you to play an active role. People cannot just expect everything to be okay, things like this need to be acknowledged and the only way for that to happen is for us, as parents, to follow up and check in on those who we trust our children to.
ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY
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ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY ARE SELLING ANIMALS
THIS IS MY STORY ABOUT WHAT I FOUND OUT ABOUT THE REAL WAY THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY GETS AND ADOPTS ITS ANIMALS .
HORROR STORY FROM AZ HUMANE SOCIETY THIS IS MY STORY THAT IS HAPPENING NOW
On June 8,2007 a 4 month old Papillion puppy was found by my daughter wondering the streets of phoenix Arizona on over 100 degrees temperature extremely hot his fur was fried dry he was thirsty tired but was very loving my daughter took him to the Arizona humane society to find out the AGE AND BREED OF THE puppy we saw that he was very young we named butterball. my daughter and i where told by the intake representative to fill out a form which was given to me this intake representative says that the form was to give information of the owner where the puppy was found that it was no problem to find out the age and the breed of butterball and that a representative would be calling Monday to give butterballs information to us I called Saturday to confirm that there was NO misunderstanding she was told that they would call Monday with his information fully assured that butterball was going to be returned by the intake representative with no worries waited until Monday getting ready for butterball home coming and at 3:54pm Monday a heartbreaking messages was left by don who said you dog is ready and will be sent off for surgery Tuesday I saying WHAT ! and his adoption free is $250.00 for napoleon or butterball what ever his name is and if you want him back he will be ready Wednesday I called Mr. don at the Arizona humane society and was asked if I had received a receipt for butterball and I did not !! MY FAMILY FEEL'S THAT THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY WAS HOLDING BUTTERBALL FOR RANSOM ! we where never told of a price nor that the puppy was never going to be given back to us WE FEEL THAT BUTTERBALL AND OTHER puppies are being taken in the same matter to be sold on the tv show pets on parade THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY HAS SENT BUTTERBALL TO PETS MART THEY ARE TRYING TO GET OUT OF WHAT HAS HAPPEN AND SOLD BUTTERBALL WITHOUT S KNOWING ANYTHING WHEN I CALLED THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY VICE PRESIDENT JILL WHO SAID YOU WILL NEVER GET HIM BACK HE IS OUR PROPERTY NOW ! after I informed them that I was taking them to court she says HAVE FUN ! I called Mrs. Cheryl Nuamnn C.E.O of the Arizona humane society left messages everyday asking for a return call about this NOTHING I STILL HAVE NOT RECEIVED A CALL so I called her assistant Tina she started to yell at me I ASKED HER WHY WHY ARE YOU YELLING AT ME and then asked me WHY DO YOU WANT HIM ? IT’S BEST IF YOU TAKE THIS TO COURT ! FEEL THAT THIS WAS TRICKERY AT ITS BEST TO IN SLAVE A INNOCENT PUPPY FOR THE PURPOSE OF A TV SHOW AND PROFIT OF THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY .how many family pets have they done this to ? how many people have they did this to ? DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THE WE CARE ABOUT ANIMALS ACT THEY ANY CARE ABOUT THE MONEY AND NOTHING ELSE NOT THE CARE AND BEST INTEREST OF ANIMALS
THIS IS MY STORY ABOUT WHAT I FOUND OUT ABOUT THE REAL WAY THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY GETS AND ADOPTS ITS ANIMALS .
HORROR STORY FROM AZ HUMANE SOCIETY THIS IS MY STORY THAT IS HAPPENING NOW
On June 8,2007 a 4 month old Papillion puppy was found by my daughter wondering the streets of phoenix Arizona on over 100 degrees temperature extremely hot his fur was fried dry he was thirsty tired but was very loving my daughter took him to the Arizona humane society to find out the AGE AND BREED OF THE puppy we saw that he was very young we named butterball. my daughter and i where told by the intake representative to fill out a form which was given to me this intake representative says that the form was to give information of the owner where the puppy was found that it was no problem to find out the age and the breed of butterball and that a representative would be calling Monday to give butterballs information to us I called Saturday to confirm that there was NO misunderstanding she was told that they would call Monday with his information fully assured that butterball was going to be returned by the intake representative with no worries waited until Monday getting ready for butterball home coming and at 3:54pm Monday a heartbreaking messages was left by don who said you dog is ready and will be sent off for surgery Tuesday I saying WHAT ! and his adoption free is $250.00 for napoleon or butterball what ever his name is and if you want him back he will be ready Wednesday I called Mr. don at the Arizona humane society and was asked if I had received a receipt for butterball and I did not !! MY FAMILY FEEL'S THAT THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY WAS HOLDING BUTTERBALL FOR RANSOM ! we where never told of a price nor that the puppy was never going to be given back to us WE FEEL THAT BUTTERBALL AND OTHER puppies are being taken in the same matter to be sold on the tv show pets on parade THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY HAS SENT BUTTERBALL TO PETS MART THEY ARE TRYING TO GET OUT OF WHAT HAS HAPPEN AND SOLD BUTTERBALL WITHOUT S KNOWING ANYTHING WHEN I CALLED THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY VICE PRESIDENT JILL WHO SAID YOU WILL NEVER GET HIM BACK HE IS OUR PROPERTY NOW ! after I informed them that I was taking them to court she says HAVE FUN ! I called Mrs. Cheryl Nuamnn C.E.O of the Arizona humane society left messages everyday asking for a return call about this NOTHING I STILL HAVE NOT RECEIVED A CALL so I called her assistant Tina she started to yell at me I ASKED HER WHY WHY ARE YOU YELLING AT ME and then asked me WHY DO YOU WANT HIM ? IT’S BEST IF YOU TAKE THIS TO COURT ! FEEL THAT THIS WAS TRICKERY AT ITS BEST TO IN SLAVE A INNOCENT PUPPY FOR THE PURPOSE OF A TV SHOW AND PROFIT OF THE ARIZONA HUMANE SOCIETY .how many family pets have they done this to ? how many people have they did this to ? DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THE WE CARE ABOUT ANIMALS ACT THEY ANY CARE ABOUT THE MONEY AND NOTHING ELSE NOT THE CARE AND BEST INTEREST OF ANIMALS
Familiar look of SR 143 will stay in place
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The SR 143 has undergone some reconstruction and work still continues, but that doesn’t mean the indigenous images and symbols that have long been a part of its landscape will go away.
Motorists driving to and from Phoenix’s Sky Harbor International Airport have become accustomed to the landform graphics, dancers, birds and pottery designs all inspired by the Hopi and Hohokam cultures.
ADOT’s Project Landscape Architectural Designer Joseph Salazar says he and his team are preserving some of that original design and adding to it.
Take for example, the Hohokam dancers. Before construction started there were four of these statues situated in the area (they’re made of molded polystyrene that gets finished smooth and painted, by the way). Those four are being refurbished and five additional statues will be joining them.
We had the chance earlier this month to join the project team as they scoped potential sites for the new and refurbished dancers (see photos).
The team used foam mockups to help determine placement. The real ones will go in between now and June.
Salazar says he was looking at the statues from a driver’s perspective to get an idea of where they should go.
It’s not all about aesthetics, though …
The striking landform graphics – made of decomposed granite – require no irrigation and very little upkeep. They also serve the functional purpose of stabilizing slopes and preventing soil erosion.
The location of the project also plays an important role in determining the look of the landscape. Because it’s so near the airport, trees and plant life that attract birds would not be a good idea – they could interfere with planes, according to Salazar.
The cultural significance of the area is something Salazar says inspired the plans, too. He worked with staff from the nearby Pueblo Grande Museum to examine Native American pottery and artifacts that he and his team were able to translate into the design.
“They took us into their archives,” he said. “It was a real, rare opportunity.”
Salazar says much from the culture was incorporated – down to the water wave motifs and the bold Hohokam geometric patterns that are cast into the new ramps.
“When people are first coming to Arizona and landing at the airport, these are the first features they’ll encounter,” Salazar said.
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| ADOT's Landscape Architectural Designer, left, evaluates a location. |
Motorists driving to and from Phoenix’s Sky Harbor International Airport have become accustomed to the landform graphics, dancers, birds and pottery designs all inspired by the Hopi and Hohokam cultures.
ADOT’s Project Landscape Architectural Designer Joseph Salazar says he and his team are preserving some of that original design and adding to it.
Take for example, the Hohokam dancers. Before construction started there were four of these statues situated in the area (they’re made of molded polystyrene that gets finished smooth and painted, by the way). Those four are being refurbished and five additional statues will be joining them.
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| Foam stand-ins are used to determine placement. |
The team used foam mockups to help determine placement. The real ones will go in between now and June.
Salazar says he was looking at the statues from a driver’s perspective to get an idea of where they should go.
It’s not all about aesthetics, though …
The striking landform graphics – made of decomposed granite – require no irrigation and very little upkeep. They also serve the functional purpose of stabilizing slopes and preventing soil erosion.
The location of the project also plays an important role in determining the look of the landscape. Because it’s so near the airport, trees and plant life that attract birds would not be a good idea – they could interfere with planes, according to Salazar.
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| The new ramp is designed with Hohokam pottery colors and motifs in mind. |
“They took us into their archives,” he said. “It was a real, rare opportunity.”
Salazar says much from the culture was incorporated – down to the water wave motifs and the bold Hohokam geometric patterns that are cast into the new ramps.
“When people are first coming to Arizona and landing at the airport, these are the first features they’ll encounter,” Salazar said.
ADOT's hosts its version of a garage sale this Saturday
To contact us Click HERE
If you’re in the market for a snowplow, Saturday might justend up being your lucky day...
That’s when Equipment Services will hold a public auction(basically ADOT’s version of a garage sale) and there’s a long list of items upfor purchase, including that snowplow.
Also on the block: assorted sedans, a few dozen trucks, someshop manuals, warning lights, a diode tester, an attenuator truck, messageboards, front end loaders, dozers and even a highway debris pickup machine! Youcan check out the complete item list online.
These auctions serve as a way for ADOT to dispose of itssurplus vehicles and equipment, but before one is scheduled, surplus items are offeredfor sale at fair market value to other state agencies, local governmentagencies, school districts and eligible nonprofit institutions.
All items not sold to other agencies are then rolled over tothe general public auction.
How does the auction work?Items are available for inspection between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m.on Thursday (3/29) and Friday (3/30) at ADOT’s Equipment Services yard, 2350 S.22nd Ave. in Phoenix.
Bidders can head to that same location for the auction onSaturday, March 31 – registration starts at 8 a.m. and the auction kicks off at10 a.m. So beat the crowds ... come early to register and look around!
There is no cost to register, simply come in and fill out abidder registration card. As the auction progresses, you’ll flash your biddercard at the auctioneer to indicate your bid on a particular item.
A few things to keep in mind …
Visit ADOT’s Equipment Services website for more auctioninformation.
Important Notice: Arizona Administrative Code isR2-15-303, Section E-5.An employee of the owning or disposing agency shall not directlyor indirectly purchase or agree with another person to purchase State surplus propertyif said employee is or has been, directly or indirectly involved in the purchase,maintenance, preparation for sale, or disposal of the surplus material.
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| These new snowplows are NOT the ones being auctioned on Saturday, but there are some older, used models headed to the block. The complete item list shows what's for sale. |
That’s when Equipment Services will hold a public auction(basically ADOT’s version of a garage sale) and there’s a long list of items upfor purchase, including that snowplow.
Also on the block: assorted sedans, a few dozen trucks, someshop manuals, warning lights, a diode tester, an attenuator truck, messageboards, front end loaders, dozers and even a highway debris pickup machine! Youcan check out the complete item list online.
These auctions serve as a way for ADOT to dispose of itssurplus vehicles and equipment, but before one is scheduled, surplus items are offeredfor sale at fair market value to other state agencies, local governmentagencies, school districts and eligible nonprofit institutions.
All items not sold to other agencies are then rolled over tothe general public auction.
How does the auction work?Items are available for inspection between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m.on Thursday (3/29) and Friday (3/30) at ADOT’s Equipment Services yard, 2350 S.22nd Ave. in Phoenix.
Bidders can head to that same location for the auction onSaturday, March 31 – registration starts at 8 a.m. and the auction kicks off at10 a.m. So beat the crowds ... come early to register and look around!
There is no cost to register, simply come in and fill out abidder registration card. As the auction progresses, you’ll flash your biddercard at the auctioneer to indicate your bid on a particular item.
A few things to keep in mind …
- Accepted payment forms include cash, money order,certified check or cashier’s check. Money orders and checks should be madepayable to ADOT. Personal checks and company checks will NOT be accepted.
- A 7.3 percent sales tax will be added to the selling priceof each item. Exception allowed only upon presentation of a state privilege(sales) license or state use license. Bidders claiming tax exempt status willneed to bring the original tax exemption license with them at time of bidderregistration.
- Vehicles sold at ADOT’s public auction are not licensed.However, one-trip permits can be purchased at a cost of $1 each. The one-trippermit will allow a person to operate an unregistered vehicle from a specifiedorigin to a specified destination. The one-trip permit will be valid for aperiod of not greater than three days, excluding weekends and holidays.
- All items are sold “As Is – Where Is.” Deficiencies, whenknown, will be indicated. However, absence of any indication does not mean theitem may not have deficiencies. All items should be inspected by a qualifiedtechnician prior to operation. Neither the state of Arizona, nor any of itsdepartments or institutions, nor the auctioneer, make any guarantee or warrantyof any kind, expressed or implied, as to the condition of the articles offeredfor sale.
- Pursuant to state law, any motor vehicle, painted yellow,owned or operated by the state, shall, if sold or transferred to a privateowner, be repainted a different color by such private owner before it may bedriven on the public highways of the state.
Visit ADOT’s Equipment Services website for more auctioninformation.
Important Notice: Arizona Administrative Code isR2-15-303, Section E-5.An employee of the owning or disposing agency shall not directlyor indirectly purchase or agree with another person to purchase State surplus propertyif said employee is or has been, directly or indirectly involved in the purchase,maintenance, preparation for sale, or disposal of the surplus material.
Recent winter storm kept snowplow operators very busy
To contact us Click HERE
Just a couple days before the official start of spring, ourstate experienced a severe winter storm that left up to 36 inches of snow insome spots.
Needless to say, that much snow meant ADOT’s snowplowdrivers were kept very busy through the weekend.
How busy? To answer that, we rounded up stats from some ofour maintenance districts. The crews working in these teams are among thenearly 400 ADOT employees trained to drive a snowplow.
When the weather gets like it did the weekend of March 17,snowplow operators will typically work 12-hour shifts to make sure the freewaysare clear and drivable…
ADOT’s Flagstaff district had 41 snowplows deployed duringthe storm March 18-19. This added up to 1,968 labor hours to clear the snow onapproximately 3,000 lane miles of highway.
* Lane miles = distance traveled x number of lanes cleared. For example, a snowplow might clear a roadway thatmeasures 25 miles, but if there are four lanes to clear on that span, the lanemiles traveled equals 100. All the numbers in this blog post are referring to lanemiles.
The storm hit Payson at around midnight on March 19 and thesnow quickly forced the closure of many local roads and I-40. ADOT crews in thearea worked around the clock putting in a total of 291 hours during this storm.They either plowed or treated 5,287 miles of roadway. The crew member providingthis info points out that the total circumference of Earth is 24,901 miles andthat it’s not unusual for the Payson crew to plow enough miles to circle theplanet TWICE in one winter!!
Cordes Junction (and surrounding areas) got some snow, too …3,606 miles of roads were treated or plowed in the area.
Crews out in Safford had seven plows in operation working inthe higher elevations on US 191, SR 266 and SR 366.
In Kingman, 13 plows were used on I-40, SR 66 and US 93. Thedistrict also utilized two de-icer trucks to help cut through the icyconditions.
Over in Globe and the surrounding areas of Roosevelt, ShowLow, Springerville and St. Johns, 26 snowplows were utilized along 15,354miles.
The northeastern portion of our state also saw quite a bitof snow …
ADOT’s Holbrook maintenance org used six plows on 1,026miles of roadway. The Winslow group utilized six plows on 3,599 miles of roads.Surrounding areas (including Kayenta, Keams Canyon, Ganado and Chambers)utilized a total of 21 snowplows along 6,790 miles of road.
We’d like to send a big thank-you to all the crews whoworked through this storm. Their efforts helped keep the roads open and safe!
Just a couple days before the official start of spring, ourstate experienced a severe winter storm that left up to 36 inches of snow insome spots.
Needless to say, that much snow meant ADOT’s snowplowdrivers were kept very busy through the weekend.
How busy? To answer that, we rounded up stats from some ofour maintenance districts. The crews working in these teams are among thenearly 400 ADOT employees trained to drive a snowplow.
When the weather gets like it did the weekend of March 17,snowplow operators will typically work 12-hour shifts to make sure the freewaysare clear and drivable…
ADOT’s Flagstaff district had 41 snowplows deployed duringthe storm March 18-19. This added up to 1,968 labor hours to clear the snow onapproximately 3,000 lane miles of highway.
* Lane miles = distance traveled x number of lanes cleared. For example, a snowplow might clear a roadway thatmeasures 25 miles, but if there are four lanes to clear on that span, the lanemiles traveled equals 100. All the numbers in this blog post are referring to lanemiles.
The storm hit Payson at around midnight on March 19 and thesnow quickly forced the closure of many local roads and I-40. ADOT crews in thearea worked around the clock putting in a total of 291 hours during this storm.They either plowed or treated 5,287 miles of roadway. The crew member providingthis info points out that the total circumference of Earth is 24,901 miles andthat it’s not unusual for the Payson crew to plow enough miles to circle theplanet TWICE in one winter!!
Cordes Junction (and surrounding areas) got some snow, too …3,606 miles of roads were treated or plowed in the area.
Crews out in Safford had seven plows in operation working inthe higher elevations on US 191, SR 266 and SR 366.
In Kingman, 13 plows were used on I-40, SR 66 and US 93. Thedistrict also utilized two de-icer trucks to help cut through the icyconditions.
Over in Globe and the surrounding areas of Roosevelt, ShowLow, Springerville and St. Johns, 26 snowplows were utilized along 15,354miles.
The northeastern portion of our state also saw quite a bitof snow …
ADOT’s Holbrook maintenance org used six plows on 1,026miles of roadway. The Winslow group utilized six plows on 3,599 miles of roads.Surrounding areas (including Kayenta, Keams Canyon, Ganado and Chambers)utilized a total of 21 snowplows along 6,790 miles of road.
We’d like to send a big thank-you to all the crews whoworked through this storm. Their efforts helped keep the roads open and safe!
Business outreach helps ADOT spread the word on upcoming projects
To contact us Click HERE
There’s no cookie-cutter approach when it comes to gettingthe word out on an upcoming ADOT project …
The method (or more likely, methods) used to communicate withthe public depends on the plans, location and a host of other factors.
News releases, social media, advertising, public service announcements, telephone hotlines, public meetings and project websites arejust some of the ways we communicate with the public.
There’s also a low-tech and simple, but very effective,approach that includes getting out and talking face-to-face with the businessowners and community members the project could impact.
“Public information is a top priority for ADOT and we are committedto making sure that folks are aware of our projects also aware of potentialimpacts and that we give an opportunity for businesses and stakeholders toconnect back with us and let us know what their thoughts and concerns are,”says ADOT senior community relations officer Mackenzie Kirby in the videoabove.
This type of in-person outreach seems to be very effective,according to ADOT senior community relations officer Megan Griego.
“We came out early on even when this was still beingplanned, when dirt hadn’t even turned yet,” says Griego in the video referringto the I-10/Loop 303 interchange project. “We were out here talking to thebusinesses to assess the type of impact this could have to their business whileit’s under construction."
The result of this early interaction often leads to a“win-win” situation, Griego says. Business owners end up getting accurate informationand are then able to pass it on to customers, telling them what they can expectwhen driving in the area.
For more on ADOT and business outreach, take a look at thevideo above, and be sure to let us know in the comments below how you like toreceive ADOT project information.
There’s no cookie-cutter approach when it comes to gettingthe word out on an upcoming ADOT project …
The method (or more likely, methods) used to communicate withthe public depends on the plans, location and a host of other factors.
News releases, social media, advertising, public service announcements, telephone hotlines, public meetings and project websites arejust some of the ways we communicate with the public.
There’s also a low-tech and simple, but very effective,approach that includes getting out and talking face-to-face with the businessowners and community members the project could impact.
“Public information is a top priority for ADOT and we are committedto making sure that folks are aware of our projects also aware of potentialimpacts and that we give an opportunity for businesses and stakeholders toconnect back with us and let us know what their thoughts and concerns are,”says ADOT senior community relations officer Mackenzie Kirby in the videoabove.
This type of in-person outreach seems to be very effective,according to ADOT senior community relations officer Megan Griego.
“We came out early on even when this was still beingplanned, when dirt hadn’t even turned yet,” says Griego in the video referringto the I-10/Loop 303 interchange project. “We were out here talking to thebusinesses to assess the type of impact this could have to their business whileit’s under construction."
The result of this early interaction often leads to a“win-win” situation, Griego says. Business owners end up getting accurate informationand are then able to pass it on to customers, telling them what they can expectwhen driving in the area.
For more on ADOT and business outreach, take a look at thevideo above, and be sure to let us know in the comments below how you like toreceive ADOT project information.
Construction to start on first segment of SR 24 in southeast Mesa
To contact us Click HERE
The Superstition Mountains served as backdrop Tuesday when agroup including contractors, ADOT and local government officials, gathered inthe East Valley to mark the construction start of SR 24.
Work begins this month on the first stretch of the stateroute also known as the Gateway Freeway. This initial section will span onemile between Loop 202 (Santan Freeway) and Ellsworth Road in southeast Mesa. The freeway will feature an interchange with elevated ramps connecting to andfrom Loop 202 near Hawes Road. The project is scheduled for completion in fall2013.
Before the ceremonial groundbreaking, Mesa Mayor Scott Smithtalked about how investment in infrastructure leads to economic opportunity andsaid SR 24 would help the nearby Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport continue to grow.
ADOT State Engineer Jennifer Toth spoke, too, and mentioned the important role freeways serve in linking communities, adding that SR 24 represents an innovative partnership between ADOT and Mesa.
SR 24 is part of the Maricopa Association of Governments’ Regional Transportation Plan approved by county voters in 2004. The city of Mesa was able to advance the start of construction on the $71.4 million project by four years by issuing bonds.
Future phases of SR 24 are proposed to continue the freewaysouth into northeast Pinal County, however those additional phases will wait until theNorth-South Corridor Study in Pinal County advances.
For more information, visit the SR 24 webpage.
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| State Engineer Jennifer Toth at Tuesday's groundbreaking ceremony. The event kicked off the start of work on SR 24. |
Work begins this month on the first stretch of the stateroute also known as the Gateway Freeway. This initial section will span onemile between Loop 202 (Santan Freeway) and Ellsworth Road in southeast Mesa. The freeway will feature an interchange with elevated ramps connecting to andfrom Loop 202 near Hawes Road. The project is scheduled for completion in fall2013.
Before the ceremonial groundbreaking, Mesa Mayor Scott Smithtalked about how investment in infrastructure leads to economic opportunity andsaid SR 24 would help the nearby Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport continue to grow.
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| Mesa Mayor Scott Smith at the event held Tuesday at the SR 24 site. |
SR 24 is part of the Maricopa Association of Governments’ Regional Transportation Plan approved by county voters in 2004. The city of Mesa was able to advance the start of construction on the $71.4 million project by four years by issuing bonds.
Future phases of SR 24 are proposed to continue the freewaysouth into northeast Pinal County, however those additional phases will wait until theNorth-South Corridor Study in Pinal County advances.
For more information, visit the SR 24 webpage.
Transportation Defined: Mile Markers
To contact us Click HERE
All Arizona state highways have mileage markers.
These reference “posts” are set two feet off the right shoulder and are about one mile apart.
Mile posts can be used to tell where you are located if you are involved in a collision, have mechanical problems, or are out of gas. If you have to stop, note the route you are on and the approximate distance from a mile post.
Transportation Defined is a series of explanatory blog posts designed to define the things you see on your everyday commute. Let us know if there's something you'd like to see explained ... leave a comment here on the blog or over on our Facebook page!
All Arizona state highways have mileage markers.These reference “posts” are set two feet off the right shoulder and are about one mile apart.
Mile posts can be used to tell where you are located if you are involved in a collision, have mechanical problems, or are out of gas. If you have to stop, note the route you are on and the approximate distance from a mile post.
Transportation Defined is a series of explanatory blog posts designed to define the things you see on your everyday commute. Let us know if there's something you'd like to see explained ... leave a comment here on the blog or over on our Facebook page!
Arizona wins best license plate award for centennial design
To contact us Click HERE
Who says a license plate can’t be well designed and even beautiful?
Not the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, that’s for sure. This group is the world’s oldest and largest nonprofit organization devoted to researching, collecting and promoting license plates.
Since 1970, ALPCA has sponsored the annual best license plate award program and this year the group has decided that Arizona’s centennial license plate is the best new plate in the nation!
“I am pleased to announce that the great state of Arizona is this year’s recipient of ALPCA’s Best Plate Award,” said ALPCA President Greg Gibson in a news release. “Arizona’s outstanding Centennial plate topped plates from nine other states. … Congratulations to the residents of the Grand Canyon state, Governor Jan Brewer and to the license plate design team in Phoenix.”
According to the ALPCA, plates are judged on overall attractiveness of the design and the plate’s legibility (it’s got to serve its purpose, after all!).
ADOT’s Special Plates Manager Michael Meier said this is a big honor, one that Arizona received only once before – in 1996 for its general issue plate.
“I think it was a combination of the simplicity of its design and the fact that it recognizes Arizona’s centennial,” Meier said of what made the plate stand out.
According to MVD statistics, 4,533 of the centennial plates have sold as of the end of March … the plate was first made available to motorists in late October 2011.
Find out more about ALPCA by visiting their website. You can also get some additional information on how specialty plates are handled in Arizona by checking out this blog post from last year.
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| The centennial plate was named best new license plate. |
Not the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, that’s for sure. This group is the world’s oldest and largest nonprofit organization devoted to researching, collecting and promoting license plates.
Since 1970, ALPCA has sponsored the annual best license plate award program and this year the group has decided that Arizona’s centennial license plate is the best new plate in the nation!
“I am pleased to announce that the great state of Arizona is this year’s recipient of ALPCA’s Best Plate Award,” said ALPCA President Greg Gibson in a news release. “Arizona’s outstanding Centennial plate topped plates from nine other states. … Congratulations to the residents of the Grand Canyon state, Governor Jan Brewer and to the license plate design team in Phoenix.”
According to the ALPCA, plates are judged on overall attractiveness of the design and the plate’s legibility (it’s got to serve its purpose, after all!).
ADOT’s Special Plates Manager Michael Meier said this is a big honor, one that Arizona received only once before – in 1996 for its general issue plate.
“I think it was a combination of the simplicity of its design and the fact that it recognizes Arizona’s centennial,” Meier said of what made the plate stand out.
According to MVD statistics, 4,533 of the centennial plates have sold as of the end of March … the plate was first made available to motorists in late October 2011.
Find out more about ALPCA by visiting their website. You can also get some additional information on how specialty plates are handled in Arizona by checking out this blog post from last year.
ADOT warns public of fraudulent web sites
To contact us Click HERE
We've all got to be careful when it comes to online transactions and sometimes knowing what to watch out for is the key to keeping your information safe.
That’s why ADOT’s Motor Vehicle Division wants to alert customersthat there are various Internet-based fraudulent schemes operating with thegoal to illegally charge an individual’s credit card account for bogus driverlicense services.
These scam artists use the Internet to falsely advertise theability to provide driver license services that in Arizona are ONLY availablethrough servicearizona.com.
MVD wants everyone to know that Arizona driver license andvehicle title/registration transactions are conducted only through thefollowing formats:
Arizona does not allow the issuance or renewal of a driverlicense via the Internet – an applicant must go to a local MVD or authorizedthird-party office.
ADOT strongly advises customers to stay away from any otherwebsites that advertise the ability to conduct Arizona driver license services.
For information on how and where to apply for a driverlicense at an MVD or authorized third-party office please visit: www.azdot.gov/mvdor www.azmvdservices.com.
That’s why ADOT’s Motor Vehicle Division wants to alert customersthat there are various Internet-based fraudulent schemes operating with thegoal to illegally charge an individual’s credit card account for bogus driverlicense services.
These scam artists use the Internet to falsely advertise theability to provide driver license services that in Arizona are ONLY availablethrough servicearizona.com.
MVD wants everyone to know that Arizona driver license andvehicle title/registration transactions are conducted only through thefollowing formats:
- At any MVD area office
- Online through servicearizona.com
- At an authorized third-party office that conducts driverlicense and motor vehicle transactions
- By standard mail to ADOT MVD
Arizona does not allow the issuance or renewal of a driverlicense via the Internet – an applicant must go to a local MVD or authorizedthird-party office.
ADOT strongly advises customers to stay away from any otherwebsites that advertise the ability to conduct Arizona driver license services.
For information on how and where to apply for a driverlicense at an MVD or authorized third-party office please visit: www.azdot.gov/mvdor www.azmvdservices.com.
Happy birthday to the ADOT Blog!
To contact us Click HERE
One year ago today we launched this blog and now, 12 monthslater, we’re trying to figure out how to mark the anniversary…
At first we thought maybe a post on why we started this blogin the first place was in order, but then we figured we’d just direct you toour very first entry to cover that.
Next, we contemplated writing a comprehensive essay on thehistory of transportation in Arizona and the importance of a freeway systemthat is able to move people and things to where they need to go … it was goingto be brilliant. But, then we remembered someone’s already done that and we blogged about it in February.
So, what to do? How about we just keep it simple by saying, thankyou for reading and watching our videos! We hope you’ll continue to come backand check out what we’re working on here on the ADOT Blog because we’ve got alot in store for the months ahead.
Before we go, we want to take a look back at the past year and re-share some of our favorite posts (it was tough to choose)…
Who could forget our introduction to the ALERT team last April? This is the ADOT crew that responds to incidents and crashes on ourfreeways. They assist on scene, close down the road and set up detours.
The Adopt a Highway program was highlighted in May. We owe abig thanks to the thousands of volunteers who take on that cleanup effort!
Did you study? ADOT’s MVD offers practice driver licensetests online and we blogged about it in June.
This blog post from July started off with a bang! As thevideo shows, there is some terrain that is so rough and rocky even heavy-dutymachinery can’t break through and that’s when blasting is necessary.
There’s a lot of Arizona sunshine and ADOT puts it to gooduse. In August we wrote about a pilot program to test out the use of solar power for vehicle emergency lights.
We like writing about bridges and in September we were happyto report the residents of Mescal and J-Six Ranch go their bridge back and wereable to say goodbye to a lengthy detour.
Back in October we showed a video about caissons – themassive steel-and-concrete pillars that make up a bridge’s substructure. Itgives an awesome view from the top of these massive structures and the post isone of our most popular with nearly 3,500 page views!
This was an interesting video and blog post … all about sand jacks and false work, the temporary structures used to build bridges, tunnelsand box culverts.
Know what an attenuator is? Read this blog post from December to find out.
January brought in a new year and a new look at building a freeway.
It was just a couple of months ago, but we remember theexcitement surrounding Arizona’s centennial. Here on the blog, we chronicled a day in the life of ADOT.
In March we discovered some green dirt and told you all about it.
This month isn’t over, but why not take another look at this post on the start of construction on the SR 24.
Wow … what a year it has been!
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| The ADOT Blog turns one today ... that's a lot of blog posts, photos and videos! |
At first we thought maybe a post on why we started this blogin the first place was in order, but then we figured we’d just direct you toour very first entry to cover that.
Next, we contemplated writing a comprehensive essay on thehistory of transportation in Arizona and the importance of a freeway systemthat is able to move people and things to where they need to go … it was goingto be brilliant. But, then we remembered someone’s already done that and we blogged about it in February.
So, what to do? How about we just keep it simple by saying, thankyou for reading and watching our videos! We hope you’ll continue to come backand check out what we’re working on here on the ADOT Blog because we’ve got alot in store for the months ahead.
Before we go, we want to take a look back at the past year and re-share some of our favorite posts (it was tough to choose)…
Who could forget our introduction to the ALERT team last April? This is the ADOT crew that responds to incidents and crashes on ourfreeways. They assist on scene, close down the road and set up detours.
The Adopt a Highway program was highlighted in May. We owe abig thanks to the thousands of volunteers who take on that cleanup effort!
Did you study? ADOT’s MVD offers practice driver licensetests online and we blogged about it in June.
This blog post from July started off with a bang! As thevideo shows, there is some terrain that is so rough and rocky even heavy-dutymachinery can’t break through and that’s when blasting is necessary.
There’s a lot of Arizona sunshine and ADOT puts it to gooduse. In August we wrote about a pilot program to test out the use of solar power for vehicle emergency lights.
We like writing about bridges and in September we were happyto report the residents of Mescal and J-Six Ranch go their bridge back and wereable to say goodbye to a lengthy detour.
Back in October we showed a video about caissons – themassive steel-and-concrete pillars that make up a bridge’s substructure. Itgives an awesome view from the top of these massive structures and the post isone of our most popular with nearly 3,500 page views!
This was an interesting video and blog post … all about sand jacks and false work, the temporary structures used to build bridges, tunnelsand box culverts.
Know what an attenuator is? Read this blog post from December to find out.
January brought in a new year and a new look at building a freeway.
It was just a couple of months ago, but we remember theexcitement surrounding Arizona’s centennial. Here on the blog, we chronicled a day in the life of ADOT.
In March we discovered some green dirt and told you all about it.
This month isn’t over, but why not take another look at this post on the start of construction on the SR 24.
Wow … what a year it has been!
ADOT crews assist with event traffic control
To contact us Click HERE
ADOT Highway Operations Supervisor Ron Martin sums things up really well in the video above…
“I know everybody hates waiting in a line and if we can keep that line moving, they’re a little happier,” he says referring to traffic that spills out of a venue’s parking lot after a big event comes to an end – in this case, a NASCAR race at Phoenix International Raceway.
He’s absolutely right, no one likes sitting in a long line of traffic. That’s why ADOT and a number of other agencies work to not only keep things moving, but to make sure the impact on surrounding traffic is minimal.
Doing this takes a lot of planning – especially for larger events like the ones held at PIR, which can take months to coordinate.
“(There are) lots of cars and that means lots of logistics,” says PIR’s Director of Communications David Lockett. “We work together with local government agencies, including ADOT and other agencies to make sure we have all the details prepared … everyone works together, kind of like our own little pit crew, to make sure everything gets done.”
That teamwork approach is one always taken whenever ADOT assists with event traffic control.
According to ALERT Commander Tom Donithan, ADOT helps during other major events, including Tempe’s annual Fourth of July celebration, Arizona’s recent Centennial Ride and funeral processions for fallen firefighters and police officers. The number of agencies involved depends on the event and location, but there’s always a coordinated effort, says Donithan. Local law enforcement agencies, municipalities, DPS, MCSO and venue officials are among the people and departments typically involved in a traffic control detail.
“We’ve all got the same goal and everybody works really well together to make things happen,” Donithan says of the collaboration.
For more on how ADOT handles traffic control, you can check out our videos and blog posts about ADOT’s ALERT Team. The methods used to detour traffic after an event are similar to the ones used by the ALERT crews during serious crashes and incidents on the freeways.
ADOT Highway Operations Supervisor Ron Martin sums things up really well in the video above…
“I know everybody hates waiting in a line and if we can keep that line moving, they’re a little happier,” he says referring to traffic that spills out of a venue’s parking lot after a big event comes to an end – in this case, a NASCAR race at Phoenix International Raceway.
He’s absolutely right, no one likes sitting in a long line of traffic. That’s why ADOT and a number of other agencies work to not only keep things moving, but to make sure the impact on surrounding traffic is minimal.
Doing this takes a lot of planning – especially for larger events like the ones held at PIR, which can take months to coordinate.
“(There are) lots of cars and that means lots of logistics,” says PIR’s Director of Communications David Lockett. “We work together with local government agencies, including ADOT and other agencies to make sure we have all the details prepared … everyone works together, kind of like our own little pit crew, to make sure everything gets done.”
That teamwork approach is one always taken whenever ADOT assists with event traffic control.
According to ALERT Commander Tom Donithan, ADOT helps during other major events, including Tempe’s annual Fourth of July celebration, Arizona’s recent Centennial Ride and funeral processions for fallen firefighters and police officers. The number of agencies involved depends on the event and location, but there’s always a coordinated effort, says Donithan. Local law enforcement agencies, municipalities, DPS, MCSO and venue officials are among the people and departments typically involved in a traffic control detail.
“We’ve all got the same goal and everybody works really well together to make things happen,” Donithan says of the collaboration.
For more on how ADOT handles traffic control, you can check out our videos and blog posts about ADOT’s ALERT Team. The methods used to detour traffic after an event are similar to the ones used by the ALERT crews during serious crashes and incidents on the freeways.
Portion of Loop 303 project is 30 percent complete
To contact us Click HERE
Work on the six-mile phase of the Loop 303 improvement project began just eight months ago and already crews have moved an amazing 1.5 million cubic yards of dirt!
But, they’ve done a lot more than that and next week we’ll show you a video chronicling the progress so far – this portion of the project (between Peoria Avenue and Mountain View Boulevard in Surprise) is about 30 percent complete and on schedule!
For today, have a look at the slideshow above featuring photos of construction and feel free to take our quick online survey about the project.
Work on the six-mile phase of the Loop 303 improvement project began just eight months ago and already crews have moved an amazing 1.5 million cubic yards of dirt!
But, they’ve done a lot more than that and next week we’ll show you a video chronicling the progress so far – this portion of the project (between Peoria Avenue and Mountain View Boulevard in Surprise) is about 30 percent complete and on schedule!
For today, have a look at the slideshow above featuring photos of construction and feel free to take our quick online survey about the project.
Work progresses on Loop 303 project north of I-10
To contact us Click HERE
We don’t know about you, but the Loop 303 improvement project sure has taught us lot about building a freeway…
So far, we have come to understand more about soffit fills and waste slabs than we ever thought possible. We’ve also learned quite a bit about false work and sand jacks, bridges, temporary bypasses, caissons and even dirt.
With the amount of work that’s been accomplished already, it’s hard to believe this is a project that got its start just eight months ago. Work is already about 30 percent complete and, as Sr. Community Relations Officer Kim Noetzel says in the video above, construction is on schedule to wrap up on time by the fall of 2013.
A little more about the project …
This six-mile phase stretches from US 60 (Grand Avenue) down to Peoria Avenue in the city of Surprise. When work is complete, motorists can expect a six-lane freeway with three general purpose lanes in each direction. This section of the project also includes the construction of three new bridges at Waddell, Cactus and Greenway roads.
ADOT and the contractor have worked to keep traffic flowing as work on the project moves forward … phasing of the project has helped with that, along with the construction of the temporary bypass used by crews to haul dirt.
“We have active construction going on adjacent to the existing travel lanes,” Noetzel said. “So we’ve been able to maintain two lanes of travel on Loop 303 and then, not far away, we’re actually building this new freeway.”
In upcoming months …
Commuters can expect work on the bridge at Waddell Road to finish sometime in June, with the Greenway interchange scheduled for completion sometime in August or September. Crews will begin on that Cactus interchange soon.
As the work progresses, we’ll continue to keep you updated … who knows what we’ll learn about next?
For more information on the project, visit the Loop 303 webpage. And, don’t forget, there’s still time to take our quick, online survey about the project.
We don’t know about you, but the Loop 303 improvement project sure has taught us lot about building a freeway…
So far, we have come to understand more about soffit fills and waste slabs than we ever thought possible. We’ve also learned quite a bit about false work and sand jacks, bridges, temporary bypasses, caissons and even dirt.
With the amount of work that’s been accomplished already, it’s hard to believe this is a project that got its start just eight months ago. Work is already about 30 percent complete and, as Sr. Community Relations Officer Kim Noetzel says in the video above, construction is on schedule to wrap up on time by the fall of 2013.
A little more about the project …
This six-mile phase stretches from US 60 (Grand Avenue) down to Peoria Avenue in the city of Surprise. When work is complete, motorists can expect a six-lane freeway with three general purpose lanes in each direction. This section of the project also includes the construction of three new bridges at Waddell, Cactus and Greenway roads.
ADOT and the contractor have worked to keep traffic flowing as work on the project moves forward … phasing of the project has helped with that, along with the construction of the temporary bypass used by crews to haul dirt.
“We have active construction going on adjacent to the existing travel lanes,” Noetzel said. “So we’ve been able to maintain two lanes of travel on Loop 303 and then, not far away, we’re actually building this new freeway.”
In upcoming months …
Commuters can expect work on the bridge at Waddell Road to finish sometime in June, with the Greenway interchange scheduled for completion sometime in August or September. Crews will begin on that Cactus interchange soon.
As the work progresses, we’ll continue to keep you updated … who knows what we’ll learn about next?
For more information on the project, visit the Loop 303 webpage. And, don’t forget, there’s still time to take our quick, online survey about the project.
Hoover Dam bypass bridge receives honor
To contact us Click HERE
If you follow us on Facebook, you might have seen the photo we posted yesterday as part of our “Where in AZ?” series...
It was a pretty cool shot taken from very high up ... 900 feet above the Colorado River, in fact! Yes, our crew was at the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge and snapped the photo.
The bridge is truly a marvel and is seen as a very important link between Arizona and Nevada for travel and commercial transportation, allowing traffic to bypass the Hoover Dam.
So, when we heard the bridge had been honored with the American Society of Civil Engineer’s (ASCE) 2012 Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement award, we were not surprised.
The announcement was made last month during the ASCE’s annual gala. From the ASCE’s website ...
“(The bridge) was constructed in a harsh environment where temperatures reached triple digits during the day. The structure is the highest and longest arch concrete bridge in the Western hemisphere and features the world’s tallest concrete columns.
Because of the 800-foot gorge below with rock cliffs, steep canyon walls and winds of up to 70 miles per hour, the contractor used two 2,500 foot long cableways connected to 330 foot high towers on each side of the canyon to transport the construction crews and 50 tons of equipment and material into place during the construction.
Due to the high heat, concrete was poured from mid-air at night and was cooled with liquid nitrogen filled tubes. The bridge is part of the five-mile long bypass that consists of four lanes of roadway, eight bridges, interchanges in both Arizona and Nevada and over 3.6 million cubic yards of shot rock excavation.
The project was built for $240 million without a dispute or claim by contractors. Obayashi Corporation and PSM Construction USA were contractors for the bridge while HDR, T.Y. Lin International and Jacobs Engineering were the design and support team. The project is owned by the Arizona Department of Transportation, the Nevada Department of Transportation, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the Western Area Power/Administration and the National Park Service. The Central Federal Lands Highway Division of the Federal Highway Administration was the project and program manager.”
Big congratulations to all involved! More information on the bridge, along with photos of its construction can be found online at hooverdambypass.org.
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| Photo courtesy of Federal Highway Administration, Central Federal Lands Highway Division (FHWA/CFLHD). More photos can be found online at hooverdambypass.org. |
It was a pretty cool shot taken from very high up ... 900 feet above the Colorado River, in fact! Yes, our crew was at the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge and snapped the photo.
The bridge is truly a marvel and is seen as a very important link between Arizona and Nevada for travel and commercial transportation, allowing traffic to bypass the Hoover Dam.
So, when we heard the bridge had been honored with the American Society of Civil Engineer’s (ASCE) 2012 Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement award, we were not surprised.
The announcement was made last month during the ASCE’s annual gala. From the ASCE’s website ...
“(The bridge) was constructed in a harsh environment where temperatures reached triple digits during the day. The structure is the highest and longest arch concrete bridge in the Western hemisphere and features the world’s tallest concrete columns.
Because of the 800-foot gorge below with rock cliffs, steep canyon walls and winds of up to 70 miles per hour, the contractor used two 2,500 foot long cableways connected to 330 foot high towers on each side of the canyon to transport the construction crews and 50 tons of equipment and material into place during the construction.
Due to the high heat, concrete was poured from mid-air at night and was cooled with liquid nitrogen filled tubes. The bridge is part of the five-mile long bypass that consists of four lanes of roadway, eight bridges, interchanges in both Arizona and Nevada and over 3.6 million cubic yards of shot rock excavation.
The project was built for $240 million without a dispute or claim by contractors. Obayashi Corporation and PSM Construction USA were contractors for the bridge while HDR, T.Y. Lin International and Jacobs Engineering were the design and support team. The project is owned by the Arizona Department of Transportation, the Nevada Department of Transportation, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the Western Area Power/Administration and the National Park Service. The Central Federal Lands Highway Division of the Federal Highway Administration was the project and program manager.”
Big congratulations to all involved! More information on the bridge, along with photos of its construction can be found online at hooverdambypass.org.
A sight to see - 200 horses take to the road in downtown Wickenburg
To contact us Click HERE
When more than 200 horses and their riders want to cross the freeway, it’s smart to move out of their way!
It also is a good reason to close the road to vehicle traffic, which is what happened twice this week when US 60 and US 93 were shut down briefly at the south roundabout in downtown Wickenburg.
The closures were put in place and enforced by the town’s police department, allowing participants of the 66th annual Desert Caballeros trail ride to safely cross from US 60 to the Hassayampa Bridge and then on into the mountains for a week-long ride.
It’s not everyday that you see this many horses walking on the road, but the ride is a long-standing tradition that, according to the Wickenburg Chamber of Commerce, draws riders from across the United States, Mexico, Canada and England!
Where did all the horses go?
The itinerary shows that riders took off from Wickenburg’s historic downtown at about noon on Monday and headed to Boyd Ranch near Box Canyon for the first night’s camp. From there, they rode to Cooper Ranch near Wagoner and, after a day of equestrian activities, camped Thursday at Sayers Station before returning to Wickenburg earlier this afternoon.
You certainly don’t have to be a cowboy to appreciate the sight of a couple hundred horses taking to the road ... so, watch the video above and enjoy!
When more than 200 horses and their riders want to cross the freeway, it’s smart to move out of their way!
It also is a good reason to close the road to vehicle traffic, which is what happened twice this week when US 60 and US 93 were shut down briefly at the south roundabout in downtown Wickenburg.
The closures were put in place and enforced by the town’s police department, allowing participants of the 66th annual Desert Caballeros trail ride to safely cross from US 60 to the Hassayampa Bridge and then on into the mountains for a week-long ride.
It’s not everyday that you see this many horses walking on the road, but the ride is a long-standing tradition that, according to the Wickenburg Chamber of Commerce, draws riders from across the United States, Mexico, Canada and England!
Where did all the horses go?
The itinerary shows that riders took off from Wickenburg’s historic downtown at about noon on Monday and headed to Boyd Ranch near Box Canyon for the first night’s camp. From there, they rode to Cooper Ranch near Wagoner and, after a day of equestrian activities, camped Thursday at Sayers Station before returning to Wickenburg earlier this afternoon.
You certainly don’t have to be a cowboy to appreciate the sight of a couple hundred horses taking to the road ... so, watch the video above and enjoy!
National Work Zone Awareness Week starts today
To contact us Click HERE
For obvious reasons, highway work zone safety is a serious subject here at ADOT…
The agency’s employees who build and maintain Arizona’s roadways are constantly aware of (and prepared for) any hazardous situation that might occur.
But, did you know that most people killed in highway work zones are drivers and their passengers? That’s why work zone safety needs to taken seriously by everyone.
To mark the start of National Work Zone Awareness week (April 23-27), we’re urging you to understand the life and death challenges associated with highway work zones.
“We don’t want to lose any of our ADOT family members who put their lives on the line to improve your highways,” said ADOT Director John Halikowski. “At the same time, national figures show more than 80 percent of people killed in work zones are drivers or their passengers. The prevention of such tragic crashes depends on drivers slowing down and paying attention in these areas.”
According to federal figures, 576 people were killed in highway work zones around the country in 2010, including 14 people here in Arizona.
More on the national push to make drivers more aware of work zone safety can be found at workzonesafety.org. If you visit the site, you’ll see this year’s awareness campaign is centered on the theme, “Don’t barrel through work zones.”
“It starts with the driver paying attention to the work zone ahead,” says ADOT State Engineer Jennifer Toth. “The signs, cones and reduced speed limits are all there to protect you, as well as our workers.”
More about work zone safety can be found on ADOT’s web site.
For obvious reasons, highway work zone safety is a serious subject here at ADOT…The agency’s employees who build and maintain Arizona’s roadways are constantly aware of (and prepared for) any hazardous situation that might occur.
But, did you know that most people killed in highway work zones are drivers and their passengers? That’s why work zone safety needs to taken seriously by everyone.
To mark the start of National Work Zone Awareness week (April 23-27), we’re urging you to understand the life and death challenges associated with highway work zones.
“We don’t want to lose any of our ADOT family members who put their lives on the line to improve your highways,” said ADOT Director John Halikowski. “At the same time, national figures show more than 80 percent of people killed in work zones are drivers or their passengers. The prevention of such tragic crashes depends on drivers slowing down and paying attention in these areas.”
According to federal figures, 576 people were killed in highway work zones around the country in 2010, including 14 people here in Arizona.
More on the national push to make drivers more aware of work zone safety can be found at workzonesafety.org. If you visit the site, you’ll see this year’s awareness campaign is centered on the theme, “Don’t barrel through work zones.”
“It starts with the driver paying attention to the work zone ahead,” says ADOT State Engineer Jennifer Toth. “The signs, cones and reduced speed limits are all there to protect you, as well as our workers.”
More about work zone safety can be found on ADOT’s web site.
Funding Arizona transportation
To contact us Click HERE
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again … transportationis personal.
It’s not just about building and maintaining roads;transportation is what connects people, businesses and our communities. Wethink it’s pretty important and want to take a chance to briefly describe howtransportation is funded in this state. The video above does a great job ofexplaining a complex topic. Here are a few of the basics…
Our transportation system is funded from two primarysources: the Federal Aid Highway Program and the Arizona Highway User RevenueFund. The money for these funds comes from you.
Every time you pump gas, 18 cents per gallon goes to the federal fund and 19 cents goes to the state. This formula hasn’t changed since the early 1990s and doesn’t alter as gas prices go up and down …you pay the same amount whether gas is one dollar or five dollars a gallon.
The Federal Aid Highway Program is made up of more than 100 programs and is kind of a trust fund set up to make sure states spend money based on federal priorities. States build highway and transit projects before receiving partial reimbursement from the fund.
The Arizona Highway User Revenue Fund is a little more local…
Gas taxes, vehicle license fees and auto registration feesare part of what pay for this fund. Money from the AZ HURF is used for roads,but also supports other services. Portions of this fund go to counties, citiesand towns for local programs.
You’ll see in the video above that people are keeping theircars longer and that vehicles are much more fuel efficient than they used tobe. Both factors equal less money in the AZ HURF fund. Add on top of that, itcosts more to maintain roads than it ever has…
So, how to pay for transportation in a way that makeseveryone comfortable?
States and the federal government are working through that(you’ve probably read about it in the news). Just know that there are plenty ofopportunities to have your opinions on the matter heard. We want to remind youof ADOT’s five-year construction program that is now available for comment.
We’ll continue to keep you updated and ask for your feedback!
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again … transportationis personal.
It’s not just about building and maintaining roads;transportation is what connects people, businesses and our communities. Wethink it’s pretty important and want to take a chance to briefly describe howtransportation is funded in this state. The video above does a great job ofexplaining a complex topic. Here are a few of the basics…
Our transportation system is funded from two primarysources: the Federal Aid Highway Program and the Arizona Highway User RevenueFund. The money for these funds comes from you.
Every time you pump gas, 18 cents per gallon goes to the federal fund and 19 cents goes to the state. This formula hasn’t changed since the early 1990s and doesn’t alter as gas prices go up and down …you pay the same amount whether gas is one dollar or five dollars a gallon.
The Federal Aid Highway Program is made up of more than 100 programs and is kind of a trust fund set up to make sure states spend money based on federal priorities. States build highway and transit projects before receiving partial reimbursement from the fund.
The Arizona Highway User Revenue Fund is a little more local…
Gas taxes, vehicle license fees and auto registration feesare part of what pay for this fund. Money from the AZ HURF is used for roads,but also supports other services. Portions of this fund go to counties, citiesand towns for local programs.
You’ll see in the video above that people are keeping theircars longer and that vehicles are much more fuel efficient than they used tobe. Both factors equal less money in the AZ HURF fund. Add on top of that, itcosts more to maintain roads than it ever has…
So, how to pay for transportation in a way that makeseveryone comfortable?
States and the federal government are working through that(you’ve probably read about it in the news). Just know that there are plenty ofopportunities to have your opinions on the matter heard. We want to remind youof ADOT’s five-year construction program that is now available for comment.
We’ll continue to keep you updated and ask for your feedback!
Pavement-improvement work on SR 347 starts next week
To contact us Click HERE
Work on a new pavement-improvement project is about to get under way in Pinal County…
Construction on SR 347 starts May 3 and will include removing the existing top-asphalt layer and repaving the roadway with new asphalt. In addition, new pavement markers and updated signage will be included in the $2.5 million project.
The work is happening along the SR 347 between Papago and Edison roads in the city of Maricopa and crews will be paving through the month of May. Construction will wrap up in early July when crews add final striping to the roadway. But, take note – the schedule is subject to change due to a variety of reasons, including weather, material availability and mechanical difficulties.
What to expect during construction
ADOT advises drivers to proceed through or near work zones with caution. Slow down and be alert for construction equipment and personnel.
Business access
Business access will be maintained whenever possible. However, it will be necessary to pave in front of business entrances along SR 347, resulting in intermittent closures. Drivers should use alternative business entrances, if possible.
Stay tuned to ADOT’s website for updates.
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| Click on map for larger view. |
Construction on SR 347 starts May 3 and will include removing the existing top-asphalt layer and repaving the roadway with new asphalt. In addition, new pavement markers and updated signage will be included in the $2.5 million project.
The work is happening along the SR 347 between Papago and Edison roads in the city of Maricopa and crews will be paving through the month of May. Construction will wrap up in early July when crews add final striping to the roadway. But, take note – the schedule is subject to change due to a variety of reasons, including weather, material availability and mechanical difficulties.
What to expect during construction
ADOT advises drivers to proceed through or near work zones with caution. Slow down and be alert for construction equipment and personnel.
- Work hours are scheduled 6 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. Sunday through Thursday.
- Construction crews will be on-site to control traffic at either end of the work zone.
- Be sure to allow extra time if you’re traveling or commuting during work hours … delays can be expected.
Business access
Business access will be maintained whenever possible. However, it will be necessary to pave in front of business entrances along SR 347, resulting in intermittent closures. Drivers should use alternative business entrances, if possible.
Stay tuned to ADOT’s website for updates.
Future female engineers get an up-close look at Loop 303 construction
To contact us Click HERE
By Laura DouglasADOT Office of Public Information
In the transportation industry, one of the greatest ways to connect with the future now is to watch a construction project take shape.
A project begins with a crude framework. But every day it grows with additions of wood, metal, concrete and materials.
Every day it looks a little different and edges closer to completion. Until one day it looks like a freeway or a bridge or an interchange—and you can see where the future leads.
It’s tangible progress.
The same can be said for mentorships—and molding the next generation of female transportation professionals. It’s about connecting with the future now.
During a recent visit to the Loop 303 corridor, a group of women representing different transportation agencies around the Valley and the Women’s Transportation Seminar hosted a group of young women from local high schools to show them progress in action. The girls are all interested in pursuing careers in engineering and transportation. Their tour of the Loop 303, which was led by the Arizona Department of Transportation, is part of a mentorship program between transportation professionals and students.
“I like being an active person and getting involved in hands-on projects,” said 16-year-old Erika Banuelos, who attends North High School in Phoenix. “I can’t imagine myself working in an office. I want to design and visualize a project.”
Banuelos, who is interested in pursuing civil engineering or aviation as a career field, was able to put on a hard hat and vest and watch as ADOT crews worked on a bridge pier for the future Loop 303/Interstate 10 interchange in Goodyear. The tour group then traveled north along the entire Loop 303 corridor, which stretches for 39 miles, stopping at several locations along the way.
“A tour like this helps the students understand what civil engineering is all about,” said Julie Kliewer, Phoenix Construction District Engineer and the leader of the Loop 303 tour. “This is a field where you can actually put your hands on what’s being built. And I think it helps them to see other women in the field and see their passion in their work. That’s how we often get our passion—from the passion of others.”
These future engineers are encouraged to pursue STEM studies now, which focus on science, technology, engineering and math. They are also paired up with female transportation professionals as part of the WTS Phoenix Chapter’s Transportation YOU program, a hands-on, interactive mentoring program that offers young girls ages 13 to 18 an introduction to a wide variety of transportation careers.
Banuelos, who is involved in the WTS’ Transportation YOU program, is one of two Arizona students who were selected to participate in the D.C. Youth Summit last month in Washington, D.C. The conference is designed to inspire, train and prepare young women for a future in STEM studies and a career in the transportation industry. Banuelos’ mentor is Hillary Foose from METRO Light Rail. ADOT State Engineer Jennifer Toth and her mentee Britton Hammit were also selected to attend the conference.
Banuelos says she’s already working on her STEM studies, and adds that a trip out to the Loop 303 construction site is where education meets real-world experience.
“Construction was always considered a man’s job. But that’s going to change,” said Banuelos, whose father has worked on Valley freeway construction projects. “More women are going to take part in construction and other engineering jobs.”
The Loop 303 tour ended with a drive through the completed 14-mile stretch from Happy Valley Parkway north to I-17. Kliewer, who enthusiastically pointed out every accomplishment along the way, said there will always be something exciting to build—it’s tangible and it’s progress.
“I’ve spent 29 years as an engineer and I still love it,” said Kliewer. “The great thing about my job is that it’s always challenging—there’s nothing routine about it. And I like sharing my knowledge with others.”
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| Phoenix Construction District Engineer Julie Kliewer leads the Loop 303 tour. |
In the transportation industry, one of the greatest ways to connect with the future now is to watch a construction project take shape.
A project begins with a crude framework. But every day it grows with additions of wood, metal, concrete and materials.
Every day it looks a little different and edges closer to completion. Until one day it looks like a freeway or a bridge or an interchange—and you can see where the future leads.
It’s tangible progress.
The same can be said for mentorships—and molding the next generation of female transportation professionals. It’s about connecting with the future now.
During a recent visit to the Loop 303 corridor, a group of women representing different transportation agencies around the Valley and the Women’s Transportation Seminar hosted a group of young women from local high schools to show them progress in action. The girls are all interested in pursuing careers in engineering and transportation. Their tour of the Loop 303, which was led by the Arizona Department of Transportation, is part of a mentorship program between transportation professionals and students.
“I like being an active person and getting involved in hands-on projects,” said 16-year-old Erika Banuelos, who attends North High School in Phoenix. “I can’t imagine myself working in an office. I want to design and visualize a project.”
Banuelos, who is interested in pursuing civil engineering or aviation as a career field, was able to put on a hard hat and vest and watch as ADOT crews worked on a bridge pier for the future Loop 303/Interstate 10 interchange in Goodyear. The tour group then traveled north along the entire Loop 303 corridor, which stretches for 39 miles, stopping at several locations along the way.
“A tour like this helps the students understand what civil engineering is all about,” said Julie Kliewer, Phoenix Construction District Engineer and the leader of the Loop 303 tour. “This is a field where you can actually put your hands on what’s being built. And I think it helps them to see other women in the field and see their passion in their work. That’s how we often get our passion—from the passion of others.”
These future engineers are encouraged to pursue STEM studies now, which focus on science, technology, engineering and math. They are also paired up with female transportation professionals as part of the WTS Phoenix Chapter’s Transportation YOU program, a hands-on, interactive mentoring program that offers young girls ages 13 to 18 an introduction to a wide variety of transportation careers.
Banuelos, who is involved in the WTS’ Transportation YOU program, is one of two Arizona students who were selected to participate in the D.C. Youth Summit last month in Washington, D.C. The conference is designed to inspire, train and prepare young women for a future in STEM studies and a career in the transportation industry. Banuelos’ mentor is Hillary Foose from METRO Light Rail. ADOT State Engineer Jennifer Toth and her mentee Britton Hammit were also selected to attend the conference.
Banuelos says she’s already working on her STEM studies, and adds that a trip out to the Loop 303 construction site is where education meets real-world experience.
“Construction was always considered a man’s job. But that’s going to change,” said Banuelos, whose father has worked on Valley freeway construction projects. “More women are going to take part in construction and other engineering jobs.”
The Loop 303 tour ended with a drive through the completed 14-mile stretch from Happy Valley Parkway north to I-17. Kliewer, who enthusiastically pointed out every accomplishment along the way, said there will always be something exciting to build—it’s tangible and it’s progress.
“I’ve spent 29 years as an engineer and I still love it,” said Kliewer. “The great thing about my job is that it’s always challenging—there’s nothing routine about it. And I like sharing my knowledge with others.”
Tell us what you think about ADOT's bicycle and pedestrian plan
To contact us Click HERE
Back in 2003, ADOT completed the Arizona Statewide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan to address safety concerns throughout the state and to promote biking and walking as a viable transportation option.
That was nine years ago and a lot of change has occurred since then. Now we’re looking to give the plan an update and we want your feedback, but first let us tell you what it’s all about...
The Arizona Statewide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan serves to guide ADOT in making transportation decisions that impact bicycling and pedestrian activities. It includes policy recommendations and design and maintenance guidelines all aimed at better accommodating bicyclists and walkers within Arizona’s transportation system.
This current update will not only create some new goals and objectives, but will reflect and respond to changes that have occurred since the plan was first approved, including the state’s population growth, new trends and technologies, and different infrastructure on the highway system (roundabouts, etc.).
The update also is going to take into account parts of the 2003 plan that have already been implemented, including:
“What better way to kick off National Bike Month than with a survey that allows people – both bicyclists and pedestrians – to provide us with their input,” said Michael Sanders, ADOT’s bicycle and pedestrian coordinator. “It’s this kind of feedback that allows us to refine the goals and objectives of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan and work to develop changes in safety, infrastructure and education.”
The survey will be online until the end of the month. Those who would like to request a mailed copy of the survey can call 602-712-8141 or send a request to ADOT’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Program at 206 S. 17th Ave., Mail Drop 310B, Phoenix, AZ 85007.
You can find out more information on ADOT’s Bicycle & Pedestrian Program website and we’ll be sure to keep you informed as the update progresses ... so stay tuned!
Back in 2003, ADOT completed the Arizona Statewide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan to address safety concerns throughout the state and to promote biking and walking as a viable transportation option.That was nine years ago and a lot of change has occurred since then. Now we’re looking to give the plan an update and we want your feedback, but first let us tell you what it’s all about...
The Arizona Statewide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan serves to guide ADOT in making transportation decisions that impact bicycling and pedestrian activities. It includes policy recommendations and design and maintenance guidelines all aimed at better accommodating bicyclists and walkers within Arizona’s transportation system.
This current update will not only create some new goals and objectives, but will reflect and respond to changes that have occurred since the plan was first approved, including the state’s population growth, new trends and technologies, and different infrastructure on the highway system (roundabouts, etc.).
The update also is going to take into account parts of the 2003 plan that have already been implemented, including:
- The creation of a statewide bicycle user map and a “Share the Road” guide.
- The publication of the “Sharing the Road with Pedestrians” guide and “Arizona Bicycling Street Smarts.”
- An update to the Bicycle & Pedestrian Program website
- The approval of a grant & funding plan, an education plan and a pedestrian action plan.
“What better way to kick off National Bike Month than with a survey that allows people – both bicyclists and pedestrians – to provide us with their input,” said Michael Sanders, ADOT’s bicycle and pedestrian coordinator. “It’s this kind of feedback that allows us to refine the goals and objectives of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan and work to develop changes in safety, infrastructure and education.”
The survey will be online until the end of the month. Those who would like to request a mailed copy of the survey can call 602-712-8141 or send a request to ADOT’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Program at 206 S. 17th Ave., Mail Drop 310B, Phoenix, AZ 85007.
You can find out more information on ADOT’s Bicycle & Pedestrian Program website and we’ll be sure to keep you informed as the update progresses ... so stay tuned!
Transportation Defined: Rebar Caps
To contact us Click HERE
This blog’s “Building a Freeway” series is our attempt atexplaining the many steps involved in constructing a major transportationcorridor...
We’ve visited several construction sites in order to sharewith you this up-close look at the process, but we have to admit sometimeswe’ll see some construction-related object and have absolutely no idea what itis.
It’s a good thing there are plenty of people on the site ofwhom we can ask: “what is that?”
We thought we’d share their answers here on the blog andwe’ll get started with rebar caps.
A rebar cap is a special steel-reinforced plastic “mushroom”cap that is placed on protruding rebar at construction sites.
Even though it’s small, it serves an important purpose:these caps provide protection from injuries. An exposed piece of rebar can meanscratches and minor injuries … or, worse, if someone were to fall from aboveonto a piece of rebar that’s sticking up.
If there’s a long row of rebar, a 2x4 piece of lumber canactually be placed on top of these caps providing another layer of safety.
Transportation Defined is a series of explanatory blog postsdesigned to define the things you see on your everyday commute. Let us know ifthere's something you'd like to see explained ... leave a comment here on theblog or over on our Facebook page!
 |
| Rebar caps |
We’ve visited several construction sites in order to sharewith you this up-close look at the process, but we have to admit sometimeswe’ll see some construction-related object and have absolutely no idea what itis.
It’s a good thing there are plenty of people on the site ofwhom we can ask: “what is that?”
We thought we’d share their answers here on the blog andwe’ll get started with rebar caps.
A rebar cap is a special steel-reinforced plastic “mushroom”cap that is placed on protruding rebar at construction sites.
 |
| Rebar caps protect from injuries. |
If there’s a long row of rebar, a 2x4 piece of lumber canactually be placed on top of these caps providing another layer of safety.
Transportation Defined is a series of explanatory blog postsdesigned to define the things you see on your everyday commute. Let us know ifthere's something you'd like to see explained ... leave a comment here on theblog or over on our Facebook page!
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