YUMA – Yuma-area drivers no longer have to worry about sudden rainstorms flooding Fortuna Wash and shutting down US 95, the area’s primary north-south route.

Starting Thursday, Dec. 15, traffic will begin flowing over a new bridge connecting Yuma with Interstate 10, Quartzsite and the rest of western Arizona. The bridge is expected to open Thursday afternoon.

“This is a great day for southwest Arizona,” said Paul Patane, ADOT district engineer. “Our community relies on US 95 every day of the year, and this bridge means a clear route for the people who live here and important commercial carriers.

Final work on the bridge and US 95 will continue until spring. Drivers should expect a 45-mph speed limit in the area until work is complete.

US 95 is the only north-south route connecting Yuma with Interstate 10 and Arizona locations along the Colorado River. Until now, it has taken drivers through the wash and has been subject to unexpected closures during heavy rains.

The bridge will make US 95 a safer and more-reliable route for agricultural shipments, international trade and seasonal visitors. It also will make travel more reliable for employees and cargo shipments at Yuma Proving Ground, a U.S. Army facility with more than 3,000 military and civilian employees. The area’s largest employer, it is one of the largest military installations in the world and home to General Motors’ hot-weather vehicle test facility. It has an economic impact of more than $430 million annually.

The $15 million project is partially funded by a $3.2 million federal grant.

PHOENIX – The 62-year-old State Route 89 bridge at Hell Canyon will be removed on Sept. 16.

The Arizona Department of Transportation replaced the 1954 bridge, which no longer met state and federal design standards for larger and heavier vehicles, earlier this year. The new bridge is better able to accommodate commercial traffic, particularly oversized loads, between Prescott and Interstate 40.

Crews began dismantling the old bridge in August by removing the bridge deck. In the next step, contractors will use an implosion technique that causes the bridge girders to melt and allows the structure to collapse onto itself.

Motorists traveling on SR 89 between Prescott and Interstate 40 should expect delays of up to 30 minutes on Sept. 16 between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. Drivers may consider changing the time of their travel or consider alternate routes, including I-17 and I-40 through Flagstaff or US 93.

The new Hell Canyon Bridge, located about 18 miles north of Chino Valley between Prescott and Ash Fork, carries about 3,400 vehicles each day.

The new $14.4 million bridge is 665 feet long and 47 feet wide – 65 feet longer and 17 feet wider than the structure it replaces – and has added strength from a fourth span. It has 12-foot lanes and 10-foot shoulders in each direction, allowing it to better accommodate oversized loads.

For more information, visit azdot.gov.

PHOENIX – Southern Arizona drivers can expect minor delays for the next eight months on State Route 92 in southern Cochise County as crews work to replace a 61-year-old bridge over the San Pedro River.

The bridge will close from 7 a.m.  to 3 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 12, so Arizona Department of Transportation workers can put temporary striping, construction barriers and a traffic signal in place. Drivers will use Palominas and Hereford roads as an alternate.

The bridge is expected to remain open throughout the project, with traffic alternating in one lane as crews work on the other lane. The temporary traffic signal will control traffic throughout the $4.3 million project, which is expected to be completed by June.

Crews have already begun clearing vegetation around the bridge, which is near milepost 340, about halfway between Sierra Vista and Bisbee. Crews will work weekdays from 6 a.m. until 2 p.m., with work hours shifting to 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. during winter months.

The existing bridge was constructed in 1955 and no longer meets modern bridge standards. The new bridge will be a 362-foot-long, three-span concrete girder bridge that provides greater clearance above the river. The bridge will feature a 12-foot-wide travel lane in each direction with 10-foot-wide shoulder on each side.

PHOENIX – When crews completed Interstate 15 through the rugged Virgin River Gorge in 1973, the 29-mile stretch in northwest Arizona was one of the most challenging projects to date in the U.S. interstate system.

Among other projects along this stretch in the past two years, the Arizona Department of Transportation’s $27 million rehabilitation of Virgin River Bridge No. 6 has been challenging as well, not just for those doing the work but for motorists facing lane restrictions.

That project – and the lane restrictions – ended this week with crews completing the bridge work, the centerpiece of $50 million in upgrades that also included paving the entire interstate through Arizona and repairing the decks of three other bridges.

Crews faced uncommon challenges as they replaced girders, decks and railings as well as widening the roadway at Bridge No. 6, said Adam Carreon, ADOT’s resident engineer on the project.

The first was the same as during the original construction: geography. The bridge stands 100 feet above the river in a narrow canyon. Not only did that demand an unending focus on safety for workers, it required specialized equipment to work in tight spaces.

“I-15 in the Virgin River Gorge is an extremely curvy section of freeway,” Carreon said. “Access was extremely limited. We had to build a steep road to bring equipment, materials and workers to the work site.”

Protecting the environment also required careful management, including shielding to prevent any debris from falling into the Virgin River. Crews worked closely with the Bureau of Land Management, Arizona Game and Fish Department, the Arizona State Land Department’s Natural Resources Division and the Environmental Protection Agency, among other agencies.

“Every precaution was taken to make sure we were sensitive to the environment,” Carreon said.

And it was a big job, involving 4,000 cubic yards of structural concrete, 3 million pounds of structural steel, 910,000 pounds of reinforcing steel, 4,000 tons of earth moved and 3,600 tons of asphalt.

The stretch of I-15 connecting Utah and Nevada is a vital economic corridor, with 1.4 million trucks using the roadway each year. Its remote location offers few alternate routes.

ADOT’s commitment to Arizona’s stretch of I-15 will continue beyond its latest project. The agency’s five-year construction program commits $33 million in fiscal 2019 to renovating Virgin River Bridge No. 1 near Littlefield.

PHOENIX ‒ The new State Route 89 bridge at Hell Canyon is longer, wider and better able to accommodate commercial traffic between Prescott and Interstate 40 than the 62-year-old span it replaces.

The Arizona Department of Transportation opened the $14.4 million bridge to traffic Thursday, June 23, after 13 months of work.

“SR 89 between Prescott and I-40 is not only an important commuter route between central and northern Arizona, but is also a key strategic detour route, when there are closures to I-17, I-40, and US 93,” ADOT Northwest District Engineer Alvin Stump said. “The new bridge will help ensure that SR 89 can continue to provide these critical transportation needs, including oversized commercial loads.”

The Hell Canyon Bridge, located about 18 miles north of Chino Valley between Prescott and Ash Fork, will carry about 3,400 vehicles each day.

The first bridge over Hell Canyon was a concrete arch structure built in 1923 as part of what was then the Prescott to Ash Fork Highway. That bridge was abandoned in 1954, when the 89 alignment moved west and the just-replaced bridge was completed.

The new bridge is 665 feet long and 47 feet wide – 65 feet longer and 17 feet wider than the structure it replaces – and has added strength from a fourth span. It has 12-foot lanes and 10-foot shoulders in each direction, allowing it to better accommodate oversized loads.

The 1954 bridge, which no longer met state and federal design standards for larger and heavier vehicles, will be dismantled over the next three months.