The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) said Friday it had received approval for its 2050 Long-Range Transportation Plan which will guide its priorities over the next 25 years.
According to the ADOT, the State Transportation Board approved the plan that sets investment priorities for the department based on anticipated system needs and revenues. Transportation investments in the state are paid for by a combination of federal, state and local funding sources. The department estimates 2050 transportation needs are $231 billion, and that looking at current funding sources the state faces an estimated $30.5 billion funding gap.
The current long-range plan, the 2040 plan, focused 78 percent of its funding for Greater Arizona (excluding Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) and Pima Association of Governments (PAG) areas) on preservation and maintenance of the existing transportation system, with the remainder being spent on modernization and safety. The 2050 plan will again focus 78 percent on preserving and maintaining the existing system and split the remainder on targeted modernization (15 percent) and expansion (7 percent).
In the MAG and PAG areas, local transportation revenues allow for greater amounts to be spent on expansion in those counties, the department said.
The recommendations in the 2050 plan were made after the department received comments from a broad cross-section of Arizonans. The input of more than 10,000 residents made it clear, officials said, the priorities for the department should be fixing roads and preserving and maintaining existing infrastructure, as well as highway projects to address growth and improve transportation infrastructure in rural areas.