Looking for a New Year’s resolution? Adopt a Highway!

PHOENIX – If keeping AZ grand is your bag, then the Arizona Department of Transportation has your perfect New Year’s resolution. 

ADOT’s Adopt a Highway volunteer program, with information available at azdot.gov/adoptahighway, has hundreds of miles available for adoption statewide. It’s a great way to give back by picking up roadside litter with friends, relatives and even kids 12 and older needing to meet school service requirements.

Civic-minded individuals, families, religious groups, clubs and others taking part in Adopt a Highway receive two-year permits to clean up roadside litter on their highway segments, usually a mile in each direction. They agree to pick up litter at least once a year and preferably three or more times a year. ADOT provides reflective vests, litter bags and safety training.

Each stretch has a recognition sign bearing the Adopt a Highway group’s name. Many groups’ signs pay tribute to loved ones and other reasons they decided to get involved. 

If you aren’t ready for a two-year commitment but want to see what Adopt a Highway is all about, you’re welcome to join a pickup Saturday, Jan. 25, along all 45 miles of State Route 286 between State Route 86 (Three Points Junction) west of the Tucson area and Sasabe at the Arizona/Mexico border. This annual event is organized by longtime Adopt a Highway volunteer Melissa Owen.

To participate Jan.25, please complete an Adopt a Highway Volunteer Permit Application by Jan. 10 and send it to [email protected]. ADOT will assign you a mile of SR 286 where you will head after a safety briefing to begin the day.

Adopt a Highway volunteers make a big difference in Arizona. During 2023, nearly 9,000 people in 850 Adopt a Highway volunteer groups filled more than 15,000 bags with roadside litter, mainly outside of metropolitan areas. The dollar value of these volunteers’ work: $674,000.

To learn more about making Adopt a Highway your New Year’s resolution, please visit azdot.gov/adoptahighway.