Navajo Nation Road Maintenance Video

About the Program

Category: Civic Education and Public Information (Best in Category)

Year: 2016

The extremely rural landscape of the Navajo Nation poses many transportation challenges for residents dispersed amidst the mesas of the Painted Desert and the cliffs above the Grand Canyon. Access to emergency services, schools, employment and extended family are all dependent upon a functional road network. The road network is primarily dirt roads and is easily impacted by inclement weather. In 2014, Coconino County voters approved Proposition 403, which established a sales tax dedicated to road maintenance. The proposition included two elements regarding the provision of County road maintenance services on the Navajo Nation. First was to expand the miles of school bus routes routinely maintained by 30%, and second was to establish a Capital Matching Fund that would fund small-scale road improvement projects. The initiative was approved by about 65% of the voters and passed overwhelming on the Navajo Nation. To effectively communicate with this rural population, Coconino County Public Works produced a video to update Nation residents on the progress since the passage of Prop. 403. The video captures the stories of the people affected by the improved service. This video demonstrates how important road maintenance is as a tool for linking residents to services and to each other resulting in better connected families and stronger communities.