What is the best DOT?

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

IDK, definitely not IDOT.

[NE2]

BOTTS'

[Scott5114]

I cannot think of a single thing I don't like about Nevada DOT that doesn't apply to every other DOT.

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

BOTTS'

Haha

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

I cannot think of a single thing I don't like about Nevada DOT that doesn't apply to every other DOT.

Number of snow plows, compared to MnDOT.

[Max Rockatansky]

I cannot think of a single thing I don't like about Nevada DOT that doesn't apply to every other DOT.

Number of snow plows, compared to MnDOT.

NDOT has a way more difficult task with keeping snow clear on state highways in the Sierra Nevada.  They can't use salt around the Lake Tahoe basin.

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

IDK, definitely not IDOT.

I know this is my thread, but do Toll authorities count?

[Scott5114]

I cannot think of a single thing I don't like about Nevada DOT that doesn't apply to every other DOT.

Number of snow plows, compared to MnDOT.

I live in Las Vegas. We get four inches of precipitation of any kind per year. So the number of snowplows NDOT has doesn't really affect my day to day if I don't go up into the mountains, which I avoid doing in the winter.

From what I have heard from people who live close to the Sierra they do a pretty good job of keeping things clear up there. Often Caltrans will have a lot of their roads closed but everything will be open on the Nevada side.

[gonealookin]

I cannot think of a single thing I don't like about Nevada DOT that doesn't apply to every other DOT.

Number of snow plows, compared to MnDOT.

I live in Las Vegas. We get four inches of precipitation of any kind per year. So the number of snowplows NDOT has doesn't really affect my day to day if I don't go up into the mountains, which I avoid doing in the winter.

From what I have heard from people who live close to the Sierra they do a pretty good job of keeping things clear up there. Often Caltrans will have a lot of their roads closed but everything will be open on the Nevada side.

Caltrans does a consistently better job getting US 50 down to bare pavement through South Lake Tahoe than NDOT does with the first few miles of US 50 starting from Stateline, which is often rutted packed snow for 24 hours or more after a decent storm.

It's true that Caltrans' roads are closed much more often than NDOT's, but Caltrans faces a much tougher challenge.  The Sierra crest catches a lot of the precipitation coming off the Pacific, so the mountains on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe don't get near as much snow as Caltrans' passes get.  And by the time you get over to the east side of Spooner Summit (US 50) and Daggett Pass (NV 207), you're very shortly in a precipitation-shadowed desert.

[GaryV]

MDOT, because Michigan in it's infinite wisdom puts only the M in there, ignoring the other 7 states that start with M.

[formulanone]

MDOT, because Michigan in it's infinite wisdom puts only the M in there, ignoring the other 7 states that start with M.

The Michael Bolton Problem

[1995hoo]

Richie Rich's friend, Dot Polka (referred to in her own comic book titles as "Little Dot").

[Beltway]

MDOT, because Michigan in it's infinite wisdom puts only the M in there, ignoring the other 7 states that start with M.

Well we also have MDOT instead of MarDOT

[elsmere241]

Not DelDOT.  Though to be fair (as Alex told me a long time ago) the state's philosophy was (is?) to bring in jobs and build houses, and then catch up on the roads.

(I would like to know why they bend over backward to bring jobs here.  But that's for another post.)

[Max Rockatansky]

I cannot think of a single thing I don't like about Nevada DOT that doesn't apply to every other DOT.

Number of snow plows, compared to MnDOT.

I live in Las Vegas. We get four inches of precipitation of any kind per year. So the number of snowplows NDOT has doesn't really affect my day to day if I don't go up into the mountains, which I avoid doing in the winter.

From what I have heard from people who live close to the Sierra they do a pretty good job of keeping things clear up there. Often Caltrans will have a lot of their roads closed but everything will be open on the Nevada side.

Caltrans does a consistently better job getting US 50 down to bare pavement through South Lake Tahoe than NDOT does with the first few miles of US 50 starting from Stateline, which is often rutted packed snow for 24 hours or more after a decent storm.

It's true that Caltrans' roads are closed much more often than NDOT's, but Caltrans faces a much tougher challenge.  The Sierra crest catches a lot of the precipitation coming off the Pacific, so the mountains on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe don't get near as much snow as Caltrans' passes get.  And by the time you get over to the east side of Spooner Summit (US 50) and Daggett Pass (NV 207), you're very shortly in a precipitation-shadowed desert.

For as much shit as Caltrans gets over signage they do generally have very good maintenance standards and practices.  Post-SB1 there aren't many problem segments with surfacing I can think of off the top of my head aside from I-80 in the Sierra.

[ElishaGOtis]

Not to toot my own horn, buuuuuuuuut...

FDOT, TxDOT, or (dare I say) Ohio DOT.

Pluses about each:
FDOT: Maintenance, mandated resurfacing, beefy signage, hurricane recovery speed, safety improvements at each project, buffered bike lanes & complete streets, cost savings initiatives that don't usually fail miserably, fast project turnarounds in some cases, truck parking infrastructure, use of technology, flying cars.

TxDOT: Use of chip seal maintenance, use of rigid pavement, frontage roads, beefy signage that ended up getting copied by a bunch of states (FDOT included), STRONG emphasis on 85th percentile speed (design speed doesn't restrict), work zone signage (TO AN EXTENT), leader in ITS infrastructure (also ended up getting copied by a bunch of states, FDOT included), use of advance lane assignment signs, unified concern reporting mechanism, superb rest areas.

ODOT: Use of smart work zone technology, use of roundabouts, strong emphasis on default speed limits & no statutory caps, winter preparation (not as good as some other states but better than the other 2 listed here lol), other ITS technology, similar unified reporting mechanism to TxDOT, consistent signage of concurrencies from my experience, superb quality & self-heating rest areas (not so great during the summer but DAMN good during the winter), truck parking capacity & infrastructure.

Also, all 3 use 6" lane lines more consistently than they did before.

There are MANY negatives about each. Trust me...

[Rothman]

Chip seal as a positive?  Egads...

[Max Rockatansky]

FDOT doesn't have a freeze/thaw cycle to deal with.  They also have terrain so flat that it makes Illinois jealous.  It is kind of hard to evaluate them favorably against other DOTs that deal with cold weather and actual terrain.

[Beltway]

FDOT doesn't have a freeze/thaw cycle to deal with.  They also have terrain so flat that it makes Illinois jealous.  It is kind of hard to evaluate them favorably against other DOTs that deal with cold weather and actual terrain.

Freeze–thaw isn't the only driver of pavement and structure deterioration. Coastal flooding, high water tables, salt‑spray corrosion, and year‑round drainage maintenance impose their own cost burdens. FDOT spends heavily on water‑management and coastal preservation because the terrain is flat and saturated. Those factors make up for the lack of freeze–thaw.

Flat coastal terrain is extremely difficult to drain. With minimal grade, high water tables, and salt‑intrusion, FDOT has to engineer drainage systems that move water with almost no natural slope. Coastal flooding, groundwater pressure, and salt‑spray corrosion impose year‑round maintenance burdens that offset the lack of freeze–thaw.

Flat coastal terrain doesn't drain on its own. FDOT often has to import borrow and build 4–5 feet of embankment just to get the roadway high enough for gravity drainage. With high water tables and salt intrusion, that fill has to be engineered, compacted, and maintained continuously.

[Rothman]

FDOT doesn't have a freeze/thaw cycle to deal with.  They also have terrain so flat that it makes Illinois jealous.  It is kind of hard to evaluate them favorably against other DOTs that deal with cold weather and actual terrain.

Freeze–thaw isn't the only driver of pavement and structure deterioration. Coastal flooding, high water tables, salt‑spray corrosion, and year‑round drainage maintenance impose their own cost burdens. FDOT spends heavily on water‑management and coastal preservation because the terrain is flat and saturated. Those factors make up for the lack of freeze–thaw.

Flat coastal terrain is extremely difficult to drain. With minimal grade, high water tables, and salt‑intrusion, FDOT has to engineer drainage systems that move water with almost no natural slope. Coastal flooding, groundwater pressure, and salt‑spray corrosion impose year‑round maintenance burdens that offset the lack of freeze–thaw.

Flat coastal terrain doesn't drain on its own. FDOT often has to import borrow and build 4–5 feet of embankment just to get the roadway high enough for gravity drainage. With high water tables and salt intrusion, that fill has to be engineered, compacted, and maintained continuously.

Pfft.  No way do these conditions equalize expenses between Florida and northern states, especially when you take into account winter operations costs.

[Scott5114]

FDOT: ...

There are MANY negatives about each. Trust me...

FDOT seems far more willing to play politics than any other state DOT I've heard of (hosing rainbow chalk off of crosswalks, installing service signage for Alligator Alcatraz, etc.).

[Beltway]

Pfft.  No way do these conditions equalize expenses between Florida and northern states, especially when you take into account winter operations costs.

Northern states do carry heavy winter‑operations costs, but even there the numbers aren't as dominant as implied -- NYSDOT's snow and ice control budget runs about $500 million dollars a year, which is well under 10% of its total program.

Florida carries a different structural burden that isn't trivial: well over a hundred ICW bridge crossings, dozens of movable spans exposed to salt‑spray corrosion, hurricane‑resilience standards, and marine‑environment deterioration. In flat coastal terrain, FDOT often has to import borrow and build 4–5 feet of embankment just to achieve gravity drainage because high water tables and salt intrusion limit discharge options. Coastal flooding, year‑round hydraulic load, continuous corrosion management, and storm‑hardening requirements materially offset the winter‑operations advantage northern states cite. Add in major bay crossings Tampa and Miami area, and the chain of bridges in the Keys.

[Rothman]

Pfft.  No way do these conditions equalize expenses between Florida and northern states, especially when you take into account winter operations costs.

Northern states do carry heavy winter‑operations costs, but even there the numbers aren't as dominant as implied -- NYSDOT's snow and ice control budget runs about $500 million dollars a year, which is well under 10% of its total program.

Total program?  What are you talking about?

NYSDOT's capital program and operations/maintenance funding are quite separate (e.g. Ops/maint aren't federal-aid eligible for starters...).

Doesn't help with the comparison to FDOT at all.

[Scott5114]

Are we about to see Kozelsplaining of NYSDOT's budget to the guy who's job is literally working on NYSDOT's budget?

   

[Beltway]

Pfft.  No way do these conditions equalize expenses between Florida and northern states, especially when you take into account winter operations costs.

Northern states do carry heavy winter‑operations costs, but even there the numbers aren't as dominant as implied -- NYSDOT's snow and ice control budget runs about $500 million dollars a year, which is well under 10% of its total program.

Total program?  What are you talking about?
NYSDOT's capital program and operations/maintenance funding are quite separate (e.g. Ops/maint aren't federal-aid eligible for starters...).
Doesn't help with the comparison to FDOT at all.

State DOT typically fund their state maintenance operations as well.