ADOT’s Holbrook District Gets $36 Million In Federal Funding

By Tammy Gray-Searles
   Projects totaling more than $36 million are planned within the Holbrook District of the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) in 2010, in addition to completion of ongoing projects.
   “The Holbrook District got a good share of the money this time,” District Engineer Lynn Johnson remarked.
   Projects include new passing lanes on State Route 77 between Snowflake and Holbrook, as well as rehabilitation of three bridges in Joseph City, repair work on State Route 87 leading to Homolovi State Park and replacement of the Tanner Wash bridge near the Arizona Public Service Co. (APS) Cholla Power Plant.
   Funding for the projects comes from the federal government and must be used for construction. Public information officer Rod Wigman noted that a long-time agreement with the federal government calls for the feds to pay for construction and the state to pay for maintenance.
   “A lot of people ask why we’re still doing construction when we are struggling to do maintenance like snow plowing,” Wigman noted. “This money has to be spent, when it comes from the federal government, the way they say.”
   Johnson added, “Even though there’s construction going on, it doesn’t mean ADOT has any money it can use for other things. The rest areas are a good example. There was a lot of money spent to build them and then we had to close them. It costs a lot of money to maintain those rest areas and we just don’t have it.”
   A total of 16 projects are lined up in 2010 for the Holbrook District, which covers most of the northeast corner of the state and more than 2,806 lane miles. Those projects include the construction of two new passing lanes on SR 77 from milepost 364 to 372. Johnson noted that the new lanes will stretch most of the way from Ballard Truss to just south of 14-mile hill, and will alternate on each side.
   “This project has been on the books a long time, and we’ve finally been able to get the funding,” he said.
   The cost of the project is estimated at $7.74 million.
   As part of a separate project, ADOT will also widen the box culverts on SR 77 near 14-mile hill to improve safety.
   “We’ll extend them away from the pavement to make it safer,” Johnson remarked.
   That project cost is estimated at $2.5 million.
   Pavement near Washboard Wash on SR 77 will also be repaired at an anticipated cost of $120,000.
   In addition to the work on SR 77, ADOT has several projects planned for the Joseph City area. Tanner Wash bridge, which leads to Cholla Power Plant, will be replaced, at an estimated cost of just over $3 million. According to Johnson, the bid process is already under way for the project.
   The three bridges that cross over Interstate 40 at Joseph City will be rehabilitated, which includes milling away and replacing the upper pavement and concrete. Johnson noted that the bridges will be closed by turns as the work progresses, but residents will be notified in advance of the closures. Repair work on the three bridges is estimated at $1.2 million.
   In Holbrook, during 2010 ADOT will mill and replace the pavement at the intersection of Navajo Blvd. and Crestview Drive. Johnson explained that two fairly recent pavement projects have been completed north and south of the site, but the intersection itself was left out of both. A portion of the off-ramp will also be re-paved, at a total estimated cost of $120,000.
   Near Winslow, ADOT will repair the large cracks in the highway leading to Homolovi State Park, as well as replace the traffic lights at the intersection of south SR 87 in downtown Winslow.
   “Those are some of the oldest traffic signals in the state,” Johnson remarked.
   He explained that the traffic signal project is in partnership with the City of Winslow, which will share in the cost.
   “That intersection is offset, and we’ll also try to make that better,” he commented. “There’s not a lot we can do about that, the way that it is, but we’ll do what we can.”
   The pavement work near Homolovi and the traffic signal project are each expected to cost about $1 million.
   Other projects in the district include:
   * Construction of a passing lane on U.S. 191 at Wide Ruins between Chambers and Ganado at an estimated cost of $2.4 million.
   * Pavement preservation work on U.S. 191 near Chambers at an estimated cost of $6.6 million.
   * Bridge erosion protection at Black Creek Bridge on SR 264 outside of Window Rock at an estimated cost of $550,000.
   * Pavement preservation on U.S. 160 near Four Corners at an estimated cost of $6 million.
   * Sign rehabilitation along Interstate 40 between Winslow and Goodwater at an estimated cost of $1.15 million.
   * Installation of new traffic signals on U.S. 163 near the Kayenta schools and on U.S. 191 at Chinle, at an estimated cost of $512,000 and $250,000, respectively.
   * Rehabilitation of the Keams Canyon exit bridge deck on Interstate 40 at an estimated cost of $2 million.
   Johnson noted that aside from the federally funded projects, funding for other work, such as maintenance, remains uncertain.
   “We don’t know what’s next,” he said, remarking that everyone is waiting for the legislature to craft the 2010-11 budget.
   Wigman said, “The budget is still taking big hits. The legislature just took more money (from ADOT), and the state still has no formal budget. We just don’t know how that’s going to impact us. We’re still in a budget crisis. We’re lucky the feds have given us the money to do this.”