Arizona and Maryland have announced plans to reopen several highway rest areas this summer.

The Arizona Department of Transportation will reopen five rest areas by the end of July, while Maryland will reopen two rest stops on Interstate 70, which have been closed for renovations since April 2008, according to reports by the Federick News-Post.

Last fall, ADOT announced plans to temporarily close 13 highway rest areas as part of efforts to address a $100 million budget shortfall.

The five stops that will reopen this summer include Ehrenberg, Sacaton and San Simon, all along I-10, Canoa Ranch on I-19, and Meteor Crater on I-40. Another four rest areas will undergo repairs in an effort to open in the fall, bringing the total to 14.

According to ADOT, some of the rest areas can be reopened now because of a stabilizing - but not yet improving - financial situation, and through careful planning and budgeting by ADOT.

"The closure of rest areas is not a problem of any one state," said Gov. Jan Brewer. "This is a problem of federal law, which prohibits the exploration of real solutions and punishes states with younger infrastructure. The federal government should allow privatization of rest areas as part of the nation's highway system, but too many limitations place the full financial burden on states, and that's where hard choices have to be made."

"Because our budget is stabilizing, we can fulfill our promise to drivers by reevaluating the rest areas program and reopen most of them," said John Halikowski, ADOT director. "However, we still need long-term, sustainable solutions to pay for rest areas and will pursue changes in federal law to allow Arizona to find partnerships and private investment in rest areas to make good use of the limited highway maintenance funds we have."

Meanwhile, Maryland said it will reopen the east and west bound South Mountain stops in late August, the Federick News-Post reports. The two facilities were upgraded to be more environmentally-friendly, and will now include geothermal heating and air conditioning, bathrooms that use less water, and a waste-water treatment facility.

The new facilities will feature trained counselors to offer travelers directions and advice on where to eat, the publication reports.