D.O.T.'s Flush with Funding
K. Robert Wendel

Happy days are here again for road builders in Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico. In November, Arizona voters approved Proposition 400, which continues the half-cent tax initially passed in 1985 for transportation improvements.

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Proposition 400 funds 345 mi. of new freeways, 275 mi. of arterial street improvements, rapid- transit improvements, more bus service and more light- rail sections. Total value over the next 20 years is estimated at $15.8 billion.

"This is the number one economic initiative to hit the state in 20 years," said Associated General Contractors executive director David Martin in Phoenix.

"It's so incredibly important for our community to have a good transportation infrastructure. It is often taken for granted, yet it's the most important public facility that is used by constituents."

Much of the work involves the new Loop 303 beltway on the northwest side of Maricopa County, but projects throughout the state will benefit.

The state has teamed with the Nevada Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, the Bureau of Reclamation and the Western Area Power Authority to construct the $234 million Hoover Dam Bypass project. That project features approach roads (see the story on page 29) as well as a 1,900-ft. bridge span over the Colorado River, just south of Hoover Dam. State D.O.T. officials are also keeping an eye on the reauthorization of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century. The legislation is currently tied up in Congress, with the president threatening a veto of a $318 billion Senate bill. The White House has introduced a $256 billion counter proposal.

As of press time, it appeared Congress would send the president a $285 billion plan.

The TEA-21 is one of the key fund sources for the state's five-year construction outlook.

The largest chunk of money in the five-year plan, $1.3 billion, is dedicated to corridor improvements throughout the state. Among the proposed projects are more U.S. Highway 93 improvements between Wickenburg and Hoover Dam, as well as $27 million for a U.S. 93-Wickenburg bypass.

Work on U.S. 93 between Wickenburg and Kingman will change the dangerous 110-mi. stretch of two-lane blacktop into a four-lane divided highway with shoulders. The existing 12-ft. lanes without shoulders will be widened to two travel lanes and an outside shoulder, equaling 38 ft. of new roadway for the more than 8,000 vehicles that use the road daily.

In Tucson, plans are calling for new lanes from Picachio Peak to downtown Tucson on I-10 and improvements on I-19 to Nogales and the international border.

Pavement preservation is also high on A.D.O.T.'s list, with $443 million in projects planned through 2009.The state is continuing more wide-spread use of rubberized asphalt on state roads, after the success of the U.S. 60 project in the Phoenix area's East Valley.

A.D.O.T. has also put aside funds for the proposed South Mountain Freeway, which would free Ahwatukee from its status as the world's largest cul-de-sac.

Tentative plans call for the freeway to follow a Pecos Road alignment through a pass between South Mountain and the Estrella Mountains at 51th Avenue.

"Loop 202 will go under I-10 and connect with Pecos Road, but we are still studying where the freeway will go after that,"" said A.D.O.T. spokesman Doug Nintzel. "An alternative place for the freeway could be on Indian community lands, so we are involved in discussions with them." >>

In Phoenix, A.D.O.T. is finishing up the construction of eight new overpasses along Grand Avenue to lessen congestion on that street. Studies are also under way on widening I -17 from the Loop 101 interchange to the Carefree Highway. A double- deck road on I-17 closer in central Phoenix is also being studied.

A Nevada for Growth

Growth is driving road construction in Nevada, with several high-profile projects planned or under way. Funded by a $1.6 billion bond offering in 2003, the new undertakings are financed by 10-year bonds backed by monies pledged against future federal transportation funds.

While the reauthorization of the Transportation Equities Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) drags on in Congress, Nevada has started its own program designed to relieve congestion.

NDOT currently has $530 million worth of construction projects under way.

"By not waiting to build these critical projects, we are receiving the economic benefits much earlier," said Jeff Fontaine, NDOT director. "We will realize about $500 million in user benefits just by reducing travel time and congestion."

Some projects include the $36 million Interstate -15 widening from two to three lanes from north of the Primm interchange to the Sloan interchange; the $25.3 million I-15/Charleston Boulevard Interchange; the $25.3 million I-515/Galleria Drive interchange in Henderson; and the $45 million I-15 10-lane widening from Sahara Avenue to the I-515/U.S.-Highway 95 Interchange in Las Vegas.

Also, a $38 million, six-lane Martin Luther King/Industrial Road connector from Palomino Lane to Wyoming Avenue in Las Vegas; a new $31 million, eight-lane Blue Diamond Highway from Valley View Boulevard to Rainbow Boulevard; and a $170 million four-lane U.S. 95 widening from Martin Luther King to Rainbow boulevards in Las Vegas

In Northern Nevada, N.D.O.T.'s District 2, Frehner Construction Co. is building the $53 million U.S. Highway 395/I-80 Reno Spaghetti Bowl; Edward Kraemer & Sons is building the $79 million I-580 Freeway Extension from Mount Rose Highway to Washoe Valley; and Ames Construction is building the $69 million Carson Freeway from North Carson Street to U.S. Highway 50 east of Reno

Edward Kraemer and Sons is building the most high- profile project in the area, the Galena Bridge. The $80 million concrete-arch bridge project is part of an overall, $350 million plan to build a bypass on I-580 around Carson City.

"We've got tons of work," said N.D.O.T. spokesman Scott Magruder. "We have a $500 million in projects in southern Nevada alone."

New Mexico Gets G.R.I.P.

Even New Mexico road construction is healthy with the 2004 passage of Gov. Bill Richardson's "Gov. Richardson's Investment Partnership," or G.R.I.P, which injects more than $1.6 billion into road construction across the state.

"We are going to have some major construction in New Mexico in the next four to six years," said N.M.D.O.T. spokesman S.U. Mahesh

In Albuquerque, the Coors/I-40 interchange is getting a makeover in a big way. (See the story on page 33.)

Also along I-40 farther east, plans call for the widening and addition of auxiliary lanes on a 4-mi. stretch between Carlisle and Juan Tabo during the next three years.

Albuquerque contractor, A.S. Horner recently completed the first of eight phases on the project with the widening and reconstruction of the Louisiana Avenue bridge.

A.S. Horner also won the second phase of the reconstruction project with a 4-mi. section of road between Pennsylvania >> and Tramway. The project includes the reconstruction of the Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge. (See the story on page 35.)

"This is the first GRIP project to break ground this year, but expect many more to come," said Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught. "GRIP is an aggressive plan to repair New Mexico's transportation infrastructure, making it safer and creating jobs in the process."

The replacement of the Washington and San Mateo bridges crossing I-40 is included in this three-year plan.

Under G.R.I.P., the road projects are broken into much smaller segments so New Mexico contractors can be competitive, Mahesh said. "We want local contractors to bid for the work.