Sec 28-363. Duties of the director; administration

A. The director shall:

1. Supervise and administer the overall activities of the department and its divisions and employees.

2. Appoint assistant directors for each of the divisions.

3. Provide for the assembly and distribution of information to the public concerning department activities.

4. Delegate functions, duties or powers as the director deems necessary to carry out the efficient operation of the department.

5. Exercise complete and exclusive operational control and jurisdiction over the use of state highways and routes.

6. Coordinate the design, right-of-way purchase and construction of controlled access highways that are either state routes or state highways and related grade separations of controlled access highways.

7. Coordinate the design, right-of-way purchase, construction, standard and reduced clearance grade separation, extension and widening of arterial streets and highways under chapters 17 and 18 of this title.

8. Assist regional transportation planning agencies, councils of government, tribal governments, counties, cities and towns in the development of their regional and local transportation plans to ensure that the streets, highways and other regionally significant modes of transportation within each county form an integrated and efficient regional system.

9. On or before December 1, present an annual report to the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate documenting the expenditures of monies under chapters 17 and 18 of this title during the previous fiscal year relating to the design, right-of-way purchase or construction of controlled access highways that are accepted in the state highway system as state routes or state highways or related grade separations of controlled access highways that are included in the regional transportation plans of the counties.

10. Designate the necessary agencies for enforcing the provisions of the laws the director administers or enforces.

11. Exercise other duties or powers as the director deems necessary to carry out the efficient operation of the department.

12. Cooperate with the Arizona-Mexico commission in the governor's office and with researchers at universities in this state to collect data and conduct projects in the United States and Mexico on issues that are within the scope of the department's duties and that relate to quality of life, trade and economic development in this state in a manner that will help the Arizona-Mexico commission to assess and enhance the economic competitiveness of this state and of the Arizona-Mexico region.

13. Develop a plan to increase use of bypass routes by vehicles on days of poor visibility in the Phoenix metropolitan area.

B. The assistant directors appointed pursuant to subsection A of this section are subject to title 41, chapter 4, article 4.

C. The director shall not spend any monies, adopt any rules or implement any policies or programs to convert signs to the metric system or to require the use of the metric system with respect to designing or preparing plans, specifications, estimates or other documents for any highway project before the conversion or use is required by federal law, except that the director may:

1. Spend monies and require the use of the metric system with respect to designing or preparing plans, specifications, estimates or other documents for a highway project that is awarded before October 1, 1997 and that is exclusively metric from its inception.

2. Prepare for conversion to and use of the metric system not more than six months before the conversion or use is required by federal law.