Can you spot all the differences in the two photos above?

The photo on the left was taken 42 years ago in March 1973, and the one on the right was snapped just earlier this month. If you’re familiar with the area, you’ll recognize that both images are of Interstate 17 near McDowell Road in Phoenix.

Right off the bat, we see that there are now several new lanes along this stretch of freeway, along with an HOV lane. We also spy a slight difference on the roadway itself – notice the reflective striping and pavement markers used today vs. the “button” pavement reflectors used in the 1970s.

How about that signage along the freeway? Much of it has changed, but we can see that the Shamrock sign many of us are familiar with is still there today … it’s just been modernized.

The lights are different and so are the vehicles, but in both photos, it is obvious that plenty of people have places to go and they’re using the freeway to get there. Of course, back in 1973 drivers didn’t have ADOT’s Twitter feed, Facebook page or az511.gov to keep them informed. In the 1970s, email wasn’t really a thing yet, so drivers didn’t have the Weekend Freeway Travel Advisory emailed to them each week either. Can you even imagine what drivers will have in another 42 years?

We love featuring vintage transportation-related photographs on this blog, but we also like to focus on how things have improved and changed over the years. That’s why we thought it’d be fun to compare the old to the new in a series we’re calling, “Yesterday and Today.”

It’s been a while since we last checked in up north on the I-17/JW Powell traffic interchange improvement project.

You remember this one, right? It was designed to improve traffic patterns and flow in the area near Fort Tuthill County Park by realigning SR 89A/Beulah Boulevard and constructing two roundabouts to provide a safer transition for traffic through the intersections.

Construction began in June 2014, but crews were actually at the site a year before that to thin out the trees in the project areas.

Before the project started, drivers were faced with one intersection (SR 89A/JW Powell Boulevard – also the south entrance to the Fort Tuthill County Park) that was very close to another intersection (JW Powell/I-17, which leads to the I-17 southbound ramps).

Now, for an update…

It’s done! Work is wrapping up and crews are in the process of pulling down construction signs. As you can see from the photo above, the area looks different than it did when construction was underway.

OK, so that update was short, but we also want to thank drivers for their patience during construction.

If you’d like to learn more about this project, please revisit our previous post and check out this informative video that gives a great overview of why the improvements were needed.

Where were you on March 20, 1973?

If you happened to be driving I-17 near McDowell Road on that date, you might spot yourself in this photo.

Taken just one month after President Richard Nixon was inaugurated for a second term, this picture gives us a good look at how I-17 has changed in the past 41 years…

If you drive that same stretch today, you’ll notice that we have more lanes than we did back then – a couple in each direction. You also will see that we no longer use those “button” pavement reflectors. Instead, ADOT uses reflective striping and pavement markers to create lane lines.

Examining this picture (which does indicate a bit of heavy traffic for those motorists heading north) makes us wonder where the drivers of 1973 got their travel info.

Of course they didn’t have ADOT’s Twitter feed or Facebook page to keep them informed and there wasn’t an az511.gov yet. Those drivers certainly didn’t have the Weekend Freeway Travel Advisory emailed to them each week because email wasn’t really a thing yet.

Here in 2014, we invite you to take advantage of the traffic-avoiding opportunities those 1973 drivers didn’t have. If you’d like to learn a little more about the history of I-17, please revisit this blog post from last year.

It’s safe to say things have changed since 1912 when the Arizona Highway Department was first established. But you don’t just have to take our word … we’ve got plenty of pictures to prove it. We combed through our archives and decided to periodically post these photos from the past in a blog series we’re calling, “From the ADOT Archives.”

Today, we’ve got an update for you on a project we first blogged about at the end of last year…

The project, located about three miles south of Flagstaff, involves the realignment of SR 89A and reconstruction of the southbound I-17/JW Powell Boulevard intersection.

Work has begun

Crews began construction of new alignments of SR 89A, and southbound on- and off-ramps at JW Powell Boulevard near Fort Tuthill County Park and Flagstaff-Pulliam Airport on June 2.

The project will also include the construction of roundabouts at the entrance to the park and the southbound I-17 ramps. The roundabouts will help facilitate the safer flow of traffic through the area, and will be designed to meet current and future traffic demand. Drivers can expect restrictions and lane closures throughout construction.

Project prep work happened last fall

Preparations for this project began last September when ADOT worked closely with Coconino County, the city of Flagstaff and the local utility company to remove trees to allow space for project construction while saving as many trees as possible (see video above). The area will be re-seeded with native vegetation once the project is complete.

The project is anticipated to be complete by summer 2015.

For more information, please visit the project webpage, or check out our previous post.

Have you driven the stretch of I-17 that’s just south of Camp Verde, lately? If so, you’ve probably noticed the construction.

Those of you who read this blog post from last year know that the work is being done to add an additional southbound “climbing lane” to help ease the flow of traffic (and if you read this blog post, you know more about what a climbing lane is).

But, if you haven’t been keeping up with the ADOT Blog, don’t worry because today we’ve got a project update that will tell you everything you need to know...

Blasting is over

Since early 2013, motorists traveling late at night on I-17 (primarily between 11:30 p.m. and 3:30 a.m.) have had to plan ahead to avoid more than 70 planned one-hour closures required to safely remove the rock material from the mountainside of Copper Canyon. Those restrictions ended with the final overnight blasting closure on Feb. 18, but additional lane restrictions are anticipated in the future as crews move to pave the new lane.

With the blasting phase of the project completed on Copper Canyon and the project 80 percent finished, crews have already begun building the subgrade for the new pavement on the climbing lane, which will add a third travel lane for motorists to climb to the top of the steep Copper Canyon.

ADOT will start final paving operations for the project in early summer when temperatures are ideal for this type of work.

More about the project

Since the January 2013 start of this $11.8 million safety improvement project, ADOT has moved approximately 350,000 tons of dirt and boulders from Copper Canyon to clear a path for construction of the first-ever climbing lane (and third travel lane) on southbound I-17.

When complete, the additional southbound lane through the final two miles to the top of Copper Canyon will make it easier for motorists to pass large trucks and slow-moving vehicles whose speed drops because of the sustained grades along this stretch of highway (mileposts 280-282), which is the primary travel route linking Phoenix and Flagstaff.

In addition to the climbing lane, ADOT is also building a two-mile-long merging lane between the State Route 260 junction and General Crook Trail traffic interchange (mileposts 285-287), which is located just before the approach to Copper Canyon. The merging lane will allow larger vehicles to gain speed before merging onto I-17 while also providing more room for passenger vehicles traveling past slower traffic.

ADOT expects to complete the entire project in early summer.

For more information, visit the project Web page.