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U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters is so anxious to come back to Arizona next month, when her tenure as the top transportation official ends, that she's not sticking around Washington, D.C., a minute longer than she needs to.

"It's very important for me to get back to Arizona. I have a (flight) reservation for Jan. 20," Peters said.

That's the day President-elect Barack Obama will be sworn in. His Cabinet takes over as soon as the Senate confirms the nominations.

As Peters prepares to head back to her home state, she's planning plenty to do. She looks forward to spending time with her husband, who kept the couple's Phoenix-area home while Peters was in D.C., and may dip into consulting, a public speaking tour or membership on corporate boards.

"I'm not focused on any particular boards at all. I've had the benefit of getting some CEO experience and I would like to use that to help American companies," Peters said.

Though she doesn't know exactly what's next for her in Arizona, she's proud of her work improving safety on American roadways since she took the office in 2006.

"Our focus on safety — from our highways, railways, seaways and airways — has led to one of the safest periods in our nation's transportation history," she said recently.

The country was on track for a record low number of traffic crashes in 2008, according to data from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Nearly 3,000 fewer people were killed on American roads in the first 10 months of 2008 than in the same period last year, and the 2007 number was a historic low, she said.

In addition, while she's been secretary, seat-belt usage reached its highest rate, she said.

But there's a lot of work waiting for Obama's transportation nominee, U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood, R-Ill., Peters said.

The federal surface transportation funding bill needs to be approved, as well as the aviation funding bill. The Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration, which are under the secretary's supervision, have been operating on continued budgets for several years. That means Congress has simply approved the same amount of funding each year, without analyzing where the money goes or how much the agencies receive.

"In aviation, not unlike our surface transportation, the revenues coming in are not going to be sufficient in and of themselves to pay for the next-generation air-traffic-control system," Peters said.

Many local transportation departments are anxious to see if Obama will approve an infrastructure stimulus package to pay for improvements to roads, bridges, sewers and other systems.

Peters said she agrees that the country needs to invest more in these things but also hopes the next administration does a good job of selecting the right projects for this funding, if it is approved.

"If it's just about spending money, I'm afraid we're going to have more bridges to nowhere," she said.

Peters, whose name has been rumored for several political positions past and future, said she would not run against her friend Jan Brewer, who will take over as Arizona's governor when Janet Napolitano is confirmed as Obama's secretary of homeland security.

"Jan is a friend. I would want to do everything I can to support Jan Brewer," Peters said.

She said she's open to considering other political positions in her future but doesn't have plans for a political campaign right now.

"I don't want to close out any opportunity to be engaged in political life in the future," Peters said. She wants to be involved in public policy, and part of that includes being involved in the debate about public policy, she said.

Of course, Peters also plans to get back on her motorcycles, a hobby of hers. She kept a pair in Arizona and a pair in D.C., though the D.C. bikes have already been shipped back.

Last year she filmed a public- service announcement in Southern Arizona about motorcycle safety. During the spot filmed in the same location where she crashed a motorcycle a few years ago, she talked about the importance of safety gear and checking the vehicle before riding.