During the National Regional Transportation Conference, Kathy Borquez and Andrew Smith discussed Pinal County, Arizona's approach to deploying technology solutions to transportation challenges.
2. Presentation Overview
• The Landscape
• Countywide Strategic
Transportation Safety Plan
• Interstate 10 Weather-Related
Safety Project
• Public Works Drone Program
• High Technology Corridor Study
• Connected and Autonomous
Vehicles Seminar
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5. The Numerology
4 Tribal Communities 5,374 Square Miles of Land Mass
1,988 Miles of Roadway in
Maintenance System
5 County Supervisor Districts 3 State Highway
Maintenance Districts (ADOT)
3 Designated Regional
Transportation Planning Agencies
12 Cities and Towns 447,138 Estimated Population
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6. Countywide Strategic Transportation
Safety Plan
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
Single Vehicle
Pedestrian
Head-On
Angle
Rear-End
44%
13%
13%
9%
7%
MOST FREQUENT FATAL CRASH TYPE
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8. Online Public Survey
392 Responses to Online Survey
55% San Tan Valley
14% Maricopa
10% Casa Grande
6% Florence
15% Other
493 Map PinPoints
74% Driver Concerns
14% Pedestrian Concerns
12% Bicyclist Concerns
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10. Future Countywide Safety Projects
Countywide Systemic Lane
Departure
73 Miles of Center & Edge Line
Rumble Strips on High Priority
Roadways
Intersection Improvements
Flashing Yellow Arrow Signals,
Median Modifications & Select
Sidewalk Installation at 5
Arterial/Collector Intersections
Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon
Mid-Section Crossing on Major
Collector Roadway
10Images: Stock Photos
11. Dust storm rolling in on I-10
near Toltec
Multi-car crash on I-10 near
Picacho
Public safety response to I-10
crash near Picacho
Haboobs, an Arizonan Weather Phenomenon
11Images: Arizona Daily Star, Tucson
12. ADOT’s I-10 Safety Improvement Project
• Sunshine Boulevard & Picacho
Peak Road near Eloy, Arizona
• Dust Detection & Warning Systems
• Spot & long-range sensors to
measure dust & visibility
• Closed-circuit camera network to
monitor visibility
• Variable speed limit signs to slow
drivers from 75 mph to 25 mph
• Loop detection sensors embedded to
assess driver’s speed
• Overhead electronic message boards
to provide safety messages in real
time to drivers
Information: Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) 12
13. Public Works Drone Program
• 2 Public Works Employees
• 2 UAS Licenses
• 1 DJI Phantom IV Pro
• 1 IPad Mini/Android Tablet
13Images: Stock Photos
14. Public Works Drone Program
Current Uses
• Aerial Imagery
• Pre/Post Project Construction
• Topography
• Traffic Studies
• Emergency Management Events
• Public Safety
Post Project Construction
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16. Public Works Drone Program
Stock Pit Volume (Cut/Fill) Future Uses
• Stock Pit Volume
• Aerial Surveys
• Geospatial Analysis
16Image: Stock Photo
17. The Next Silicon Valley?
• High Technology Corridor
• Board of Supervisors recently
approved resources to study the
advantages
• Study area is along I-10 and I-8
within Pinal, Pima, and Maricopa
Counties
• Anchored by Inland Port Arizona,
Lucid Motors, and Nikola Motor
Company in Pinal County
• Focused on high tech employment
creation
Source & Images: Apache Junction/Gold Canyon Independent 17
19. Connected and Autonomous
Vehicles Local Government Seminar
• September 26th
• Sponsored by Pinal County and
the towns of Florence and Queen
Creek
• Designed specifically for
municipal-county elected officials,
senior leadership, and economic
development and transportation
specialists
• Focused on changing
infrastructure needs and new
policy guidelines
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20. Connected and Autonomous
Vehicles Local Government Seminar
Infrastructure
•Streets
•Sidewalks
•Curbs
•Parking
•Pick-up/Drop-off Areas
•Maintenance
Legal &
Regulatory
•Zoning & Land Use
•Data Privacy, Management &
Governance
•Vehicle Safety Standards
•Cyber & Physical Safety
•Liability & Insurance
•Intellectual Properties
Other
•Data Requirements
•Affordability
•Access
•Equity
•Partnerships
•Community Engagement
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Editor's Notes
Greetings
Thanks
Introductions
Presentation overview
Rebranding campaign
Widen Open Opportunity
Domestic & international business
Rich history
Strong traditions
Innovative ways to support trade & commerce
Marketing campaign
Centrally located in Arizona between Phoenix and Tucson
Nexus of the Sun Corridor that begins in central Arizona & extends south into northern Mexico
12 cities & towns: Apache Junction, Casa Grande, Coolidge, Eloy, Florence, Kearny, Mammoth, Marana, Maricopa, Queen Creek, Superior & Winkelman
4 Tribal communities: Ak-Chin, Gila River, San Carlos & Tohono O’odham
447,138 estimated population: Population within unincorporated Pinal County is largely due to the explosive growth of San Tan Valley, a census-designated place
5,374 square miles of land mass: Largest landholder is Arizona State Land Trust at 35% followed by private landholders at 22% & Tribal reservations at 23%, (Federal/BLM at 14% & Public landholders at 6%)
1,988 miles of roadways in the maintenance system: 978 are paved & are dirt/gravel
5 county supervisor districts: Based on the 2010 Census, the county gained 2 new districts since population exceeded 200,000
3 Arizona Department of Transportation maintenance districts: Central, Southcentral & Southeast
3 Designated Regional Transportation Planning Agencies: 2 MPO’s, Maricopa Association of Governments & Sun Corridor Metropolitan Planning Organization & 1 council of governments, Central Arizona Governments
Roughly $2.4 million of federal allocation received annually that is divided among the 2 MPO’s & COG
With cooperation from our regional planning agencies, Pinal County initiated development of this comprehensive safety plan
Each of the planning agencies completed individual safety plans for their regions
While there were common key findings among the 3 safety plans; there were also key differences
The county wanted to take a holistic approach to a safety plan that combines relevant recommendations from all the safety plans and identifies safety projects and strategies to implement countywide for safer travel
Key tasks include crash data analysis, emphasis areas, network screening & priority safety projects & strategies
The top 5 fatal crash types are
Single Vehicle at 44%
Pedestrian and Head-On at 13%
And Angle and Rear-End at 9% and 7%
Oversight for development of the safety plan is provided by Safety Technical Advisory Committee
Over 20 different agencies including law enforcement & emergency response individuals are represented on the committee
The safety plan includes 2 rounds of stakeholder-public meetings.
Approximately 50 people attended the Stakeholder-Community meetings last year and are scheduling the Round 2 next month
We had an excellent discussion & received valuable input from community members about potential dangers on the roads
Distracted and impaired driving seemed to be common themes heard at each meeting
Recognizing the need to reach more of the community, an on-line survey was launched last year
On-line survey & mapping tool yielded just under 400 responses & almost 500 map pinpoints concerning traffic safety regarding driver safety concerns
Example Map Pinpoints from one of our communities
From the map, you are able to drag pins to areas of concern & provide comments from a driving, walking or biking perspective
Pinal County recommended HSIP Projects for FFY 2021-2022
Countywide Systemic Lane Departure Project, center and edge line rumble strips for 15 rural roads/73 miles: $3,018,898 (100% funded)
Gantzel Road (Ocotillo-Combs Rds), flashing yellow arrow intersection signals, median modifications, and sidewalk installation: $633,615
Hunt Highway (Gary-Bella Vista Rds), flashing yellow arrow intersection signals, median modifications, and sidewalk installation: $760,969
Kings Ranch Road (Sunrise Dr), pedestrian hybrid beacon: $372,350
Key High Tech Companies
Lucid Motors
$700 million, 2,000-worker auto plant in Casa Grande
Production of electric & self-driving vehicles
Inland Port Arizona (and Pinal Logistics Park)
2,700 acre project site located in Coolidge
$ 900-worker operation
Nikola Motor Company
$800 million, 1,800-worker semi truck plant in Coolidge
Production of hydrogen fuel cells and electric semi trucks
1 AV car = 2,666 Internet Users
1 AV needs 4K Gigabytes vs. average user needs 1.5 Gigabytes
