May 15 public hearing for ADOT's tentative five-year program

Proposed 2027-2031 focus: upgrading pavement and improving major corridors

15, on the agency's recommended statewide program and construction projects for the next five years.

The hearing on the 2027-2031 tentative Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program will be held during a meeting of the Arizona State Transportation Board scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Mountain Standard Time (10 a.m. on the Navajo Nation) at the Cameron Chapter House, located at US 89 in Cameron. The meeting and hearing can also be accessed virtually at aztransportationboard.gov.

Those wishing to provide comments remotely can request to do so until 8 a.m. MST (9 a.m. on the Navajo Nation) the day of the hearing using instructions available at aztransportationboard.gov.

The proposed five-year program allocates $4.1 billion for projects throughout Greater Arizona, which encompasses areas outside of Maricopa and Pima counties. This includes:

• $2.7 billion to preserve, rehabilitate, and replace pavement and bridges
• $431 million to expand capacity
• $939 million to improve highway safety, efficiency and functionality, including intersection improvements, updates to ports of entry and rest areas, smart technologies, and adding signals, signs and shoulders

The tentative five-year program allocates $431 million for projects that increase the capacity or extent of highways throughout Greater Arizona, specifically including:

• $83 million to widen SR 260 east of Payson, known as the Lion Springs segment
• $82 million to widen US 93 at Big Jim Wash between Wickenburg and Wikieup
• $86 million to widen SR 347 south of Phoenix in Pinal County

In Maricopa County, the tentative plan allocates $2.04 billion for projects planned in conjunction with the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG). This funding will be supplemented with funds from Proposition 479, which voters approved in 2024. Individual projects have not been identified so far, as MAG is currently engaged in the process of generating new revenue projections, updating project cost estimates, establishing specific project sequencing, and considering project modifications for its plan later this spring or summer.

In Pima County, the plan allocates $615 million for projects in collaboration with the Pima Association of Governments (PAG). Following the successful March 2026 RTA Next ballot initiative, which extended the existing half-cent sales tax to fund transportation improvements, PAG will update its Transportation Improvement Program with new revenue forecasts, update estimated project costs, establish project sequencing, and consider project modifications. The updates are anticipated in late spring or summer and would be incorporated into ADOT's updated five-year program.

The five-year program also includes $178 million for the Airport Capital Improvement Program, which provides funding in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Administration for projects to design and construct safety, security, and capacity enhancements, prepare various plans and studies, and fund improvements at the Grand Canyon Airport, which ADOT operates.

Funding for the overall statewide Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program comes from federal and state dollars, in addition to money generated by users of transportation services in Arizona, primarily through gasoline and diesel fuel taxes, the Arizona vehicle license tax and various aviation taxes. Both the Maricopa and Pima county regions have dedicated, voter-approved sales taxes for transportation that fund expansion projects.

ADOT's five-year program is developed from a compilation of regional allocations from the State Transportation Board, along with funding streams that include federal grants, legislative appropriations and contributions from local governments. It is the result of working closely with local governments, regional transportation planning organizations and tribal partners to prioritize projects that are ready to build or design.

To help you more easily locate projects, ADOT has developed a searchable project dashboard that allows the public to look for projects by highway number, project name or other identifying features. The database is available at azdot.gov/5yeardashboard.

The public comment period for the 2027-2031 Tentative Five-Year Transportation Facilities Construction Program ends at 5 p.m. MST (6 p.m. on the Navajo Nation) Friday, May 22. The State Transportation Board is expected to consider formal action on the final program at its June 19 meeting. The tentative program is available at azdot.gov/tentative5year for review and comment. ADOT welcomes feedback via an online form that will be available at azdot.gov/5yearcomments, by email at [email protected], by phone at 855.712.8530 and by mail at Attn: Nancy Becerra, c/o ADOT Communications, 1655 W. Jackson St., Room 179, MD 126F, Phoenix, AZ 85007.