PHOENIX ‒ With the Texas Canyon Rest Area along Interstate 10 reopening Thursday after a six-month renovation, the Arizona Department of Transportation is moving past the halfway point in a decade-long effort to improve rest areas statewide.

Texas Canyon, between Benson and Willcox in southeastern Arizona, will be the ninth of ADOT’s 17 rest areas to be improved since 2013. The San Simon Rest Area near the New Mexico line on I-10 reopened in May.

Two more rest areas will open later this year: Mohawk at milepost 56 on I-8, closed since 2009, and Haviland on I-40, just east of the State Route 95 interchange, which will see work through December.

Many of the improvements are designed to repair or replace aging infrastructure that in some cases has been in place for as long as 50 years. The largest effort: making significant improvements to water and wastewater systems, including drilling through hundreds of feet through rock to find new sources of water. Pipes and septic systems that have reached their life expectancies are being replaced.

ADOT also is working to make certain that all rest areas comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act so every traveler can take advantage of the facilities. Other work includes new pavement, new fixtures in restrooms and repairs to buildings. The cost of the work varies but averages about $3 million per rest area.

The renovations are designed to make Arizona’s rest areas more functional and pleasant.

“Not only are rest areas important places for drivers to take a break from the road, they’re a place where Arizona can make a good impression on those from elsewhere,” ADOT Director John Halikowski said. “They have to be clean and provide the services visitors expect on their travels across Arizona.”

Rest areas once were little more than bare-bones stopping spots on the freeway, offering drivers only a chance to visit a restroom and stretch their legs before getting back on the highway. Today, renovated rest areas offer much more.

All Arizona rest areas include drinking fountains and vending machines, pet exercise areas and relief stations. Some, including Sunset Point on I-17, offer stunning mountain and desert views. And they’re clean: Caretakers are on-site at most rest areas 16 hours a day.

Updates will continue around the state through 2020, when the Mazatzal Rest Area on SR 87 south of Payson is scheduled to reopen. That facility has been closed since 2009.

Arizona rest areas

Interstate 8:

• Mohawk, milepost 56, update 2016
• Sentinel, milepost 85, no update scheduled

Interstate 10:

• Ehrenberg, milepost 5, updated 2014
• Bouse Wash, milepost 53, updated 2013
• Burnt Well, milepost 86, updated 2014
• Sacaton, milepost 181, update 2017
• Texas Canyon, milepost 320, updated 2016
• San Simon, milepost 388, update 2016

Interstate 17:

• Sunset Point, milepost 251, updated 2013
• McGuireville, milepost 297, updated 2013

Interstate 19:

• Canoa Ranch, milepost 32, update 2017

Interstate 40:

• Haviland, milepost 22, update 2016
• Meteor Crater, milepost 235, update 2019
• Painted Cliffs, milepost 358, update 2019

US 60:

• Hassayampa, milepost 116, updated 2013
• Salt River Canyon, milepost 292, updated 2014

State Route 87:

• Mazatzal, milepost 236 (at SR 188 interchange), update 2020.

PHOENIX – Just in time for the Memorial Day weekend, the San Simon rest areas near the New Mexico state line on eastbound and westbound Interstate 10 have reopened.

The rest areas, which serve more than 430,000 drivers each year, had been closed since March 2015 for much-needed repairs, including the drilling of a new well.

Digging the well deep enough to reach enough good water is the reason the rest area was closed beyond its scheduled December opening, said Bobby Wheeler, rest area manager with the Arizona Department of Transportation.

“To reach water that can supply the eastbound and westbound rest areas, we had to drill more than 1,000 feet,” he said.

In addition to improving the water and septic systems, the project included upgrades to buildings in both rest areas and ensuring that all structures at the site comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

About 12,000 vehicles a day drive along I-10 at San Simon, about three miles west of the New Mexico state line.

A second rest area on I-10 in southeastern Arizona, Texas Canyon, is expected to reopen before the Fourth of July holiday. Texas Canyon, about 20 miles east of Benson at milepost 320, has been closed for repairs since December.

PHOENIX - The Interstate 10 rest areas at Texas Canyon in southeastern Arizona will close for renovations on Tuesday, Dec. 1, and reopen in approximately six months.

The rest areas, serving both directions of I-10 between Benson and Willcox at milepost 320, will see renovations to restrooms, water systems and ramadas. They will be repaved as well.

Motorists can use facilities in Willcox and Benson, as well as at the Johnson Road traffic interchange at the east end of Texas Canyon (Exit 322).

The nearest ADOT rest area, located at San Simon approximately 66 miles east of Texas Canyon near the New Mexico state line, will be closed for renovations until January 2016.

The Texas Canyon rest areas are scheduled to reopen in May 2016.

ADOT works to inform the public about planned highway restrictions, but there is a possibility that unscheduled closures or restrictions may occur. Weather can also affect a project schedule. To stay up-to-date with the latest highway conditions around the state, visit the ADOT Traveler Information Center at az511.gov or call 511.

PHOENIX – The Ehrenberg rest area located along Interstate 10 at milepost 4, near the California state line, has reopened to motorists, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

The rest stop was temporarily closed on Jan. 5 to complete scheduled work conducted under a statewide renovation program to improve rest areas provided for traveling motorists by ADOT. Improvements performed included the restroom facilities, some paving as well as other structural repairs and upgrades.

The rest area renovation program seeks to make improvements to enhance customer service for the motorists who utilize the facilities.

A map of rest area locations can be found in the Map Book at azdot.gov/maps.

For more information about ADOT, please visit: azdot.gov

PHOENIX – The McGuireville rest area on southbound Interstate 17 is scheduled to be closed between 5 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Friday, April 10, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.  The southbound I-17 McGuireville rest area is located near milepost 297, two miles south of the State Route 179 junction.

The rest area closure will be the result of a right lane restriction on southbound I-17 between mileposts 294 and 299 which will prevent access to the rest area. The northbound I-17 McGuireville rest area will remain open.

The southbound I-17 lane restriction is part of ADOT’s goal to enhance the safety of the state’s transportation system.

ADOT works to inform the public about planned restrictions on highways, but there is a possibility that unscheduled closures or restrictions may occur. Weather can also affect a project schedule. To stay up to date with the latest highway conditions around the state, visit the ADOT Traveler Information Center at az511.gov or call 5-1-1.

The locations of all state highway rest areas may be viewed at azdot.gov/maps.

For more information about ADOT, please visit azdot.gov.

PHOENIX – The eastbound and westbound San Simon rest areas, located near milepost 388 on Interstate 10 near the Arizona-New Mexico state line, will be closed to the public for approximately five months starting Monday, March 23, for renovations to the facilities, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

Improvements will be made to the water and septic systems, buildings and structures. All facilities will also be brought up to the current standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The renovations are part of a statewide program to enhance customer service for the motorists who utilize the rest areas.

While the San Simon rest areas are closed, the I-10 rest area at Texas Canyon, located between Willcox and Benson, will remain open.

The locations of all state highway rest areas may be viewed at azdot.gov/maps.

For more information about ADOT, please visit: azdot.gov.

PHOENIX – The Haviland rest area on westbound Interstate 40 is scheduled to be temporarily closed for approximately three weeks beginning Monday, March 9, for upgrades under a statewide rest area renovation program. The Haviland rest area is located at milepost 22, between the Arizona-California state line and Kingman.

ADOT will perform repairs and improvements on the restroom facilities, including the replacement of water and booster pumps, septic tanks and leach fields. Other repairs and upgrades will involve road surface paving, and electrical, mechanical and structural work.

Additionally, the rest area renovation program incorporates improvements to make the facilities compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

ADOT continually seeks ways to improve the state’s transportation system. The rest area renovation program enhances the customer service experience for motorists who utilize the facilities.

The locations of all state highway rest areas may be viewed at azdot.gov/maps.

For more information about ADOT, please visit azdot.gov.

PHOENIX – The Ehrenberg rest area located along Interstate 10 at milepost 4, near the California state line, will remain closed until mid-April in order to complete scheduled renovations, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation. The rest stop closed Jan. 5.

The facilities are undergoing renovations under a rest area renovation program. The work will include improvements such as the replacement of water and booster pumps, replacement of septic tanks and leach fields, some paving as well as other structural repairs and upgrades.

The rest area renovation program seeks to make improvements to enhance customer service for the motorists who utilize the facilities.

The other Interstate 10 rest areas along this route, Bouse Wash near milepost 52 and Burnt Well near milepost 86, will remain open.

A listing of all state highway rest areas can be viewed at: http://azdot.gov/maps.

For more information about ADOT please visit: azdot.gov