The SDOT established a new rule Monday that makes closing sidewalks for construction a last resort. The new rule, called "Pedestrian Mobility Around Work Zones Director’s Rule," introduces new standards and practices for construction that will limit the need for sidewalk closures. This includes new standards for the types of materials that can be used and where they can be placed. Read More »

Engineering News-Record Southwest magazine recently named the ADOT as its Owner of the Year. The award honored the department for its management of infrastructure projects throughout the year. The magazine specifically highlighted ADOT's $110 million Loop 202 Red Mountain Freeway widening project in Mesa and its $73 million widening of Loop 101 in the Scottsdale area. Read More »

Parkway East will be closed for five days so that crews can demolish Greenfield Bridge. I-376 East had full-lane closures beginning at 6 a.m. Sunday. The closure may last through Jan. 1. Officials and crews estimate that the parkway will open earlier than that, assuming that they have fair weather to complete the work. The demolition of the Greenfield Bridge started Monday. Read More »

Mayor Muriel Bowser of Washington, D.C., launched the area’s first Tree Summit ("Canopy 3,000"), which is an initiative that strives to add more trees to the region’s public and private properties. The mayor has partnered with the National Capital Region, the Director of the National Park Service and the District Department of Transportation to plant the new trees. Read More »

The ATA recently reduced its For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index by 0.9 percent to make its advanced seasonal adjustment. The index was previously increased by 1.8 percent in October. The index amounted to 134.3 for the month of November. This is a decrease from the initial 135.5 figure for the month of October. This figure also shows that the index is 1.1 percent beneath the record high. Read More »

Officials from the TSA recently added eligible Allegiant customers to its Pre?® program, which is an expedited screening travelers' program. With the Pre?® screening, travelers don’t have to take off their shoes, show their laptops, remove their belts or light outerwear or set aside their 3-1-1 liquids, allowing the TSA to screen low-risk travelers faster than traditional methods. Read More »

NTSB leaders will publish its "2016 Most Wanted List" to enumerate desired transportation safety improvements. The list will be released to help the NTSB and its partners focus on transportation safety issues that need improvement throughout the United States. The press conference is during the leaders’ 95th Annual Meeting for the Transportation Research Board. Read More »

The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) reported Monday that U.S. public transportation completed approximately 8 billion trips within the first nine months of this year. This figure shows a decline of 1.2 percent when compared to the first nine months of 2014, meaning that there were approximately 95.6 million fewer trips when compared to the same period in 2014. Read More »

The Idaho Department of Transportation began its replacement project Dec. 22 for the Broadway Bridge in Boise, Idaho, by setting up detours for traffic that typically use the bridge. The current Broadway Bridge does not meet modern design standards and needs to also meet the requirements for current as well as future volumes of traffic that will use the bridge. Read More »

The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) developed a public-private partnership to construct the new Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway, which crews will start to build the summer of 2016. The highway is the largest project that has ever been proposed for Arizona. It is also the first highway public-private partnership that the state has seen and will not be used as a toll road. Read More »

The Senate recently passed legislation that will give benefits to people using public transportation, bringing commuters closer to having permanent parity to parking benefits. Now the legislation requires the signature of President Barack Obama. With the new legislation, transportation and infrastructure leaders hope that more people will be encouraged to use public transportation. Read More »

PDOT has scheduled portions of Interstate 676 to close Monday so that crews can complete overhead bridge construction. The closures will affect traffic from I-76 and Broad Street interchanges on I-676 in Philadelphia. The closures will end 5 a.m. Thursday. The closures are part of the area’s project to replace regional bridges that are considered structurally deficient. Read More »

Washington State Ferries (WSF) will launch the construction of its fourth new Olympic Class ferry, which is receiving funds from the Connecting Washington package for transportation finances, in Jan. Officials from the WSF recently signed a Notice to Proceed agreement with Vigor Industrial, a shipbuilder company. The agreement is for the shipbuilder’s construction on the ferry. Read More »

The U.S. Senate approved the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015 Dec. 18. The Senate updated the bill so that it now includes portions of HR 1987, which the U.S. House of Representatives passed May 18. There were also provisions from S. 1611 included in the new bill; S. 1611 was passed by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee in the summer of 2015. Read More »

The U.S. Senate approved the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015 Dec. 18. The Senate updated the bill so that it now includes portions of HR 1987, which the U.S. House of Representatives passed May 18. There were also provisions from S. 1611 included in the new bill; S. 1611 was passed by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee in the summer of 2015. Read More »

The Highway and Transportation District of the Golden Gate Bridge has scheduled public meetings, where the public can discuss the proposed changes of the Golden Gate Ferry (GGF) and bus services of the Golden Gate Transit (GGT) in Tiburon. The open house is scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Jan. 20. A formal public hearing is scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Jan. 21. Read More »

The FAA recently joined Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA) in a comprehensive settlement agreement that will settle several pending as well as possible enforcement cases. As part of the agreement, Boeing will pay $12 million. The company will also improve its compliance systems and improve several of its certification processes to heighten the company’s airworthiness. Read More »

MDOT recently chose ITS technologies for its research spotlight because the technologies are able to decrease crashes, traffic delays and emissions while still making notable returns with investments. The project, entitled "Costs and Benefits of MDOT Intelligent Transportation System Deployments," began in June 2013 and ended in July 2015. The cost of the project is $235,933. Read More »

ADOT has scheduled temporary closures in January for US 60, east of Superior, so that crews can continue their improvement construction and blasting work. The closures are necessary so that ADOT crews can add a new passing lane as well as widen the shoulders along the roadways that are east of Superior. The first three-hour closure will be from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m Tuesday. Read More »

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a safety alert for hoverboards Dec. 24. Manufacturers developed hoverboards just in time for the holidays this year, but the lithium batteries need safety improvements before the hoverboards can be completely safe for use. Hoverboards use lightweight, powerful lithium batteries. Read More »