By Ryan Harding / ADOT Communications

It didn't happen quite as rapidly as it might seem from the time-lapse video above, but as bridge projects go this job in northwestern Arizona was lightning fast.

After four days of around-the-clock work, the Arizona Department of Transportation installed Arizona’s first prefabricated bridge along Oatman Highway, also known as old Route 66, with the help of Mohave County and the Federal Highway Administration.

This innovative approach, in which the 110-foot bridge was manufactured in Phoenix and then transported in sections to the site in northwestern Arizona, saved a lot of time and cost in detours for local traffic and visitors.

In this case, the road was closed for only four days instead of weeks or months. Mohave County also estimated this approach saved $2.6 million in impacts to travelers and businesses, including work zone delays and detours.

The bridge lifts Oatman Highway over Sacramento Wash, a mile north of Interstate 40 in Topock, and will help prevent future flooding of the road.

Mohave County received a $1 million Federal Highway Administration grant toward the $1.8 million project, which ADOT administered.

You can see lots of photos from the project in the slideshow below.

By Ryan Harding / ADOT Communications

Thinking about heading to Oatman, the burro capital of Arizona? Very soon you’ll be driving over a new bridge crossing Sacramento Wash to get there from I-40 in Topock.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. So what? Just another bridge, right?

Well, this is Arizona’s first prefabricated bridge. ADOT is administering this project for Mohave County, which received a Federal Highway Administration grant.

The bridge wasn't built at the project site but in the Phoenix area, where the contractor had space next to another ADOT project it was working on. This week, crews are assembling sections that fit together kind of like Legos. The innovative approach saves both time and money while cutting down on closures that would be needed to build a conventional bridge.

Instead of shutting down Oatman Highway (also known as Old Route 66) for weeks, the project requires just a four-day closure while the bridge is assembled.

Check out the photos above of the crews putting the bridge together. It will open in time for travel this weekend.

By Steve Elliott / ADOT Communications

We just received this slideshow from Wednesday's demolition of the eastbound Interstate 10 bridge at Ina Road in Marana. It documents a big step forward for a $120 million project creating a modern traffic interchange in a busy area northwest of Tucson.

Please note that while Ina Road is closed at I-10, ADOT is maintaining access to area businesses throughout.

By early 2019, motorists, residents and businesses will benefit from a bridge carrying Ina Road over I-10 and railroad tracks and offering ramps to and from the interstate. 

By Tom Herrmann / ADOT Communications

If you’re in Yuma and you want to go north to Interstate 10, Lake Havasu City and points north, there’s really just one route. US 95 is the only road from Arizona’s third-largest metropolitan area to the rest of western Arizona.

Unfortunately, that vital road could be shut down for hours when sudden rainstorms struck in the wrong place. Fortuna Wash drains rainwater that falls in the desert and mountains east of Yuma into the Gila River. When the wash flooded, drivers on US 95 had three choices: drive west 60 miles into California, travel 100 miles east to Gila Bend or simply sit and wait.

No more.

Just before the holidays in Yuma, with little fanfare, ADOT crews moved barricades aside and opened a new bridge over Fortuna Wash. The four-lane bridge means travelers no longer have to wonder whether the weather will stop their journeys.

The route’s impact on the Yuma economy would be hard to overstate. US 95 not only is a vital route for commercial trucks carrying local and Mexican-grown produce to American markets, it’s also the primary way into Yuma for the tens of thousands of people who spend their winter in the area. Every morning and afternoon, it’s also the road employees of the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground – one of the area’s largest employers – use to get to their jobs.

Yuma County’s population has climbed to more than 200,000, placing it behind only the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas in Arizona. Making sure a rainstorm can’t shut down one of their most-important roads is a great way to start the new year.

By Ryan Harding / ADOT Communications

Responding to community concerns and acting in the interest of public safety, ADOT has added fencing to Midgley Bridge on State Route 89A, just into Oak Creek Canyon from Sedona.

The 10-foot-tall fencing is chain-link style and attached to the bridge’s railings. It’s brown to match the surrounding environment and is designed to be difficult to climb.

We shared news of this project in a recent news release. The slideshow above shows how the fencing looks.

The city of Sedona sought ADOT’s help because four people committed suicide from the bridge in 2015. After adding signs at the bridge carrying the number of a suicide-prevention hotline, ADOT worked with Sedona and other area partners, including Coconino County and the U.S. Forest Service, to design the fencing.

“Fencing can complement a broader community response by acting as an additional barrier and possible deterrent,” ADOT Director John Halikowski said as the project launched.

By Doug Nintzel / ADOT Communications

As the traditional holiday shopping season kicked off before Thanksgiving, ADOT unwrapped a gift for drivers and businesses in the northwest Valley: a bridge carrying Bell Road over Grand Avenue (US 60) in Surprise.

Reopening Bell Road, which closed April 1 to allow faster completion of a modern traffic interchange, is the first benefit of a project designed to reduce traffic congestion where two major roadways and the BNSF Railway tracks come together.

Where Bell Road drivers once had to endure waits for trains to pass, they now pass over the tracks. Where drivers on Bell Road and Grand Avenue once lost time to red lights, traffic flows freely.

We've shared a lot about the benefits of this $41.9 million project. But what do area residents think about this early holiday present? The video above shares those perspectives.

Crews are now reconstructing the future eastbound lanes of Grand Avenue near the bridge. They also will complete the new ramps to connect Grand Avenue to and from the Bell Road bridge in time for the start of the Cactus League season in late February.

See more ADOT videos at youtube.com/ArizonaDOT.

By Steve Elliott / ADOT Communications

If you think the photos above suggest that the overpass under construction at Bell Road and Grand Avenue (US 60) is just about ready for traffic, you're right.

Barring an unforeseen event such as extreme weather, we're planning to reopen Bell Road across Grand Avenue on Tuesday, Nov. 22, in time for the start of the holiday shopping season.

The slideshow above shows a Bell Road bridge lacking only final touches. Crews are pouring concrete to form the base for asphalt pavement and completing the bridge fence, among other work.

While ADOT has maintained access to area businesses through a convenient detour route, reopening Bell Road as scheduled is a big step forward for this project and for Surprise.

After the Bell Road bridge opens, the final phase of work will include completing ramps to and from Grand Avenue and completing new eastbound lanes of Grand Avenue. That's scheduled to be done before the start of baseball spring training.

A full closure of Bell Road is allowing crews to complete this $41.9 million project faster and without affecting spring training or the holiday shopping season. With the end in sight, West Valley motorists are set to begin reaping the rewards from having a modern traffic interchange in the heart of fast-growing Surprise.