The Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities recently received an award from the National Park Service (NPS) and Federal Highway Administration for its McCarthy Road Planning & Environmental Linkages or PEL study.
[Above photo by Alaska DOT&PF]
Officially called the 2026 “Program Innovation and Development Excellence Award,” the honor highlights the innovative planning work conducted by the agency prior to making significant improvements to a 60-mile stretch of McCarthy Road in southeast Alaska.
According to the FHWA, PELs are designed to streamline transportation projects by “linking” the planning phase with environmental reviews, creating a “collaborative approach” to transportation decision-making that merges? both environmental and community goals together in one process.
McCarthy Road offers visitors views of Alaska’s most scenic views, like the Wrangell Mountains or the Kuskulana River Bridge, while also being one of only two roads leading to the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve – one of America’s largest national parks.
For drivers looking to connect to nearby towns like McCarthy, AK, the road is their only surface transportation option. However, poor road conditions, landslides, and erosion can often leave both visitors and locals alike stranded with little-to-no access to critical services, such as fueling stations or cell phone coverage, Alaska DOT&PF said.
The agency noted that its PEL report addressed those issues; detailing 20 scalable project and road enhancement recommendations, all based on stakeholder and public input regarding visitor experience, recreational area access, and environmental enhancements.
Specifically, the report’s guidance focuses on a range of solutions such as localized bridge and culvert improvements, as well as road rehabilitation and reconstruction initiatives, Alaska DOT&PF said.
“The McCarthy Road PEL study team delivered an innovative, community-centered planning framework to improve one of Alaska’s most rugged and environmentally sensitive transportation corridors within Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve,” the NPS noted in the awards announcement.
