McMurry Talks Safety, Project Delivery, Funding Reauthorization
This episode of the “The Stream by AASHTO” podcast features Russell McMurry – commissioner of Georgia Department of Transportation – discussing his emphasis areas as 2025-2026 president of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials; emphasis areas focused on safety, ways to improve project delivery, and federal surface transportation funding reauthorization.
[Above image by AASHTO]
This podcast series is part of the AASHTO Environmental Management technical service program or TSP. Operated by the AASHTO, this TSP explores a wide array of environmental topics that affect state departments of transportation and the infrastructure programs they oversee.
In this episode, McMurry – who graduated cum laude from Georgia Southern University with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering – traces his career path at Georgia DOT; starting as an intern in 1990 and then progressing all the way up to his appointment as commissioner in 2015.
McMurry also shares what he’s learned over the more than three decades he’s spent at Georgia DOT in a wide variety of roles, such as construction project manager, district engineer, director of engineering, chief engineer, and planning director.
Finally, McMurry details what federal surface transportation funding reauthorization legislation could look like if passed Congress this year; a bill he hopes will contain strong formula funding programs to support state transportation needs and how he wants it to be easier for states to take on NEPA assignment duties from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Arizona DOT Plans ‘Dark Skies’ Highway Lighting Project
The Arizona Department of Transportation recently unveiled plans for a highway lighting project in Flagstaff that supports roadway safety and the city’s commitment to “dark skies” – an effort to use full-cutoff fixtures that cast little or no light upward in public areas to help protect nocturnal animals from light pollution.
[Above photo by Arizona DOT]
The project – set to start in May – aims to replace more than 370 outdated high pressure sodium highway light fixtures with amber light emitting diode or LED lights in locations under Arizona DOT’s jurisdiction. The agency said results from test locations indicate amber LED lights effectively reduce impacts on the brightness of the night sky.
Locations where lighting will be converted to amber LED include all I-17 and I-40 interchanges in Flagstaff, including the large interchange connecting the two interstates. Lighting also will be switched along stretches of Milton Road and Route 66 – also known as Santa Fe Boulevard – near and in the downtown Flagstaff area.
“Preparing for this project involved collaboration with partners as our team developed and tested LED lighting that meets our safety standards, especially for pedestrians and cyclists, while also supporting dark skies and astronomy in the area,” said Jeremy DeGeyter, Arizona DOT’s Northcentral district administrator, in a statement. “We appreciate that the city and dark skies supporters took part in the process.”
“This project didn’t happen overnight,” added Chris Luginbuhl, president of the Flagstaff Dark Skies Coalition. “[We] have been in conversations with Arizona DOT for many years to reach this solution. The result shows that there are ways to provide the visibility and safety needed on the roadways while preserving a star-filled sky. It really is a win-win.”
Environmental News Highlights – April 22, 2026
TxDOT Helps Protect Galveston’s ‘Ghost Wolves’
On a quiet stretch of Farm-to-Market Road (FM) 3005 near Galveston Island, TX, local wildlife experts – in partnership with the Texas Department of Transportation – have installed warning signs to reduce collisions with a rare species of coyote known as “ghost wolves.”
[Above photo by TxDOT]
Ghost wolves are coyotes that harbor DNA from the critically endangered red wolves that used to thrive in southeast Texas until the late 1900s. As the red wolf populations declined, they crossbred with coyotes. As a result, DNA remnants from the red wolf can be found in the genetic code of this isolated island coyote population.
The effort to add wildlife crossing signs began in 2024, when researchers from the Gulf Coast Canine Project got in touch with TxDOT and voiced their concerns about the “ghost wolf” mortality rate along FM 3005.
To understand the issue, Brooke Bowman – a TxDOT environmental project planner – attended the third annual “Ghost Wolves Town Hall” in January 2025. At this event, researchers and members of the community discussed the importance of ghost wolves and how to protect them as development on Galveston Island increases.
TxDOT explained in a blog post that Bowman and her team worked with Galveston County officials to collect and analyze coyote mortality data along FM 3005 from 2020-2025 – pinpointing the locations along FM 3005 with the highest mortality rates for ghost wolves, which would be where warning signage could be most effective.
The agency and its partners selected 10 locations across a 19-mile stretch of FM 3005 to place the wildlife crossing signs; half on the westbound side and half on the eastbound side to help ensure drivers coming from both directions are aware that wildlife is more likely to cross in these areas.
This sign installation project – completed in March – is also expected to benefit many other species that inhabit the island. By alerting drivers to possible wildlife crossings, the signage also helps decrease the risk of wildlife-vehicle collisions that can endanger motorists, TxDOT stressed.
Many state departments of transportation are also deeply involved in projects to provide wildlife-vehicle collisions.
For example, the Idaho Transportation Department recently started construction on three wildlife underpasses on US-30 between the town on Montpelier and the Wyoming border.
That project includes the installation of two concrete box culverts, one bridge, and six miles of eight-foot-tall fencing between highway mileposts 442 and 448.
The ITD noted in a statement that this short section of US-30 intersects with a “topographic bottleneck” known as Rocky Poin, that funnels migratory mule deer along a regionally important mule deer migration route. Once completed by the fall of this year, this underpass project will improve driver safety while protecting migrating deer and other wildlife, the agency said.
WSDOT Moving ‘Bellingham Rock’ for Fish Passage Project
As part of a project to restore fish passage for three local creeks near Bellingham, WA, the Washington State Department of Transportation will relocate the well-known “Bellingham Rock” that has served as an informal “community billboard” along I-5 for more than five decades.
[Above photo via Wikipedia]
The rock is located within the active construction area at Chuckanut Creek, where WSDOT contractor crews will replace culverts that currently block a native fish passage.
The agency said in a statement that it understands that the Bellingham Rock holds meaning for many people in the community, noting that fieldwork conducted in 2023 by WSDOT documented the rock as a “unique geological feature” that has been used for decades as a “community message space.”
Thus WSDOT is making a “deliberate effort” to proceed with fish passage work while also honoring the Bellingham Rock’s place in community history, the agency said.
Because the rock sits directly within the footprint of work needed to complete the project, the rock must be removed and cannot be returned as WSDOT and Federal Highway Administration regulations prohibit placing the rock within limited access areas, such as along I-5 or nearby ramps, where it could encourage unsafe parking or pedestrian access.
To move the rock, WSOT contractor crews are first removing paint and other potentially environmentally hazardous materials from the rock’s surface and surrounding soil so they can be properly disposed of at permitted facilities.
To that end, small tools will be used to chip paint from the rock, WSDOT said, with specialized chemicals applied to dissolve remaining layers. Soil ranging from six inches to two feet deep will be removed from around the rock to address contaminants such as lead and cadmium, the agency added.
Because the rock weighs more than 100 tons, it cannot be moved intact without significant cost and specialized equipment and permits. So, once the paint is removed, WSDOT’s crews will break the rock into smaller pieces by drilling holes and using expansive grout to slowly create cracks. This process will be repeated several times before pieces are loaded onto trucks and removed from the site. No explosives will be used, WSDOT stressed.
A privately owned property in Bellingham has been identified as a potential location for the rock. WSDOT and the property owner have signed an agreement, reviewed by the State Attorney General’s Office, that includes provisions to maintain public access.
The agency said the property owner will inspect the rock after it is removed and broken into transportable pieces and may choose whether to accept final possession. If accepted, WSDOT will deliver the rock to the agreed-upon location, and the property owner will assume responsibility for its long-term care. However, if the property owner elects not to take possession of the rock, WSDOT said it will develop a process to distribute a limited number of pieces to interested members of the public.
While Bellingham Rock adds a unique layer to this project, the primary purpose remains restoring fish passage along this stretch of I-5, the agency emphasized. Work on the Lake, Friday, and Chuckanut creeks fish passage project began in 2025 and is part of WSDOT’s statewide fish passage program. In this particular project, crews are removing 17 outdated culverts under I-5 near Lake Samish and replacing them with 10 new structures that will allow fish to move freely upstream.
The work at Chuckanut Creek includes building three new bridges along northbound and southbound I-5 and Old Samish Road. Once complete, this will open nearly three-quarters of a mile of additional habitat for salmon and steelhead.
Utah DOT Cameras Join Wildfire Detection System
The Utah Department of Transportation is linking hundreds of its traffic cameras to a wildfire detection and monitoring system being developed by the Utah Education Network or UEN and the University of Utah.
[Above photo by the Utah Forestry, Fire, and State Lands]
In September 2025, UEN partnered with the Bureau of Land Management; the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands; the Utah DOT; and the Utah Communications Authority via a Fuels Management and Community Fire Assistance program grant from the U.S. Department of the Interior to build a wildfire monitoring network across Utah.
In a blog post, UEN said its goals in developing this system are to enhance wildfire detection, management, modeling, and safeguards through rapid response and research using live video feeds and artificial intelligence or AI.
Jeff Egly, associate director for research support and strategic partnerships for UEN and a principal investigator for this project, explained in the post that in the “far out reaches” of Utah’s Wasatch Mountain range, “it can take a while for someone to report a fire. So, cameras will really quicken the response time.”
[Editor’s note: The Colorado Department of Transportation recently kicked off the statewide camera installation project that will replace 66 cameras throughout the state – including several located in remote areas of regions where people rely on the cameras to view highway conditions. The agency said the new camera infrastructure represents a full transition to a state-owned, state-managed network designed for long-term reliability, cost savings and operational control.]
There is also a major cost-benefit to improving wildfire response times, Egly added. For example, according to fire news service Daily Dispatch, Utah experienced 1,146 wildfires in 2025 that burned 164,707 acres – fires that cost about $191.8 million to fight.
UEN plans to install as many as 40 cameras in the coming years in rural, hard-to-reach areas where federal, state, local agencies, and first responders lack visibility, Egly said. As a result, UEN is working with ALERTWest – a company that partners with public and private organizations like universities, first responders, utilities, and land stewards – to create a network of cameras that feed into its “situational awareness platform,” which is powered by an AI engine that monitors the cameras 24/7.
When a fire signature is detected, someone from ALERTWest verifies whether it’s valid, and if necessary, begins notifications to the appropriate agencies. Those agencies and first responders will have access to the cameras, including the ability to control and maneuver them, UEN noted.
Now Utah DOT is integrating hundreds of its traffic cameras into the ALERTWest system to help beef up its coverage. While those traffic cameras are fixed, meaning they cannot be maneuvered, the monitoring and notification processes work the same.
In the future, Egly noted that UEN may add motorized wildfire cameras to key Utah DOT camera locations – including corridors where the agency has a vested interest, such as I-15 south of Cedar City where fires have crossed the interstate, forcing Utah DOT to close it.
“Utah was a doughnut hole on the western map prior to adding UDOT cameras,” Egly said. “Now, traffic cameras are providing visibility – a real benefit to first responders.”
Environmental News Highlights – April 15, 2026
RIDOT Opens New East Bay Bike Path Bridges
The Rhode Island Department of Transportation recently hosted an event celebrating the completion of the $25.9 million East Bay Bike Path Bridges project that replaced two bridges that carry a key bikeway over the Barrington and Palmer Rivers.
[Above photo by RIDOT]
The new structures – originally built in the 1880s to carry freight trains – were converted from railroad to bike path bridges in the 1980s. RIDOT had to close the bridges in late 2019 due to their deteriorated and unsafe condition, the agency said.
The new bridges – each approximately 300 feet long and 14 feet wide – help link up several bike path segments to form a continuous 14.5-mile bikeway from Providence to Bristol.
RIDOT said it used prefabricated modular truss Acrow bridges to construct the two new structures as that design is easier to maintain, quicker to install, impacts the environment less, and offers a long design life. The lighter weight design of the Acrow bridges also required smaller foundational elements and piers, the agency noted.
“Today is a great day as we celebrate the restoration of these bridges for our beloved East Bay Bike Path,” noted Governor Dan McKee (D) in a statement. “We’re so appreciative of the efforts of our congressional delegation to secure the additional funding necessary to complete the project, which will be enjoyed by residents and visitors alike for generations to come.”
Given the popularity of the East Bay Bike Path and the importance of replacing these bridges for cyclists and pedestrians, RIDOT said it reallocated $10 million within its 10-year-plan to fund the bridges.
The agency added that Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) were “instrumental” in helping deliver $14 million in federal funds, including a $5 million federal earmark, to compete the double bridge project.
Responding to public input during the permitting process for fishing access points, RIDOT said it modified overall scope of the two-bridge project to include two fishing piers.
“RIDOT was committed to working with our federal, state and local partners to advance this project and deliver it to the communities,” added Robert Rocchio, RIDOT’s interim director. “[They are] important links for the state’s oldest and most popular bike path.”