Here at the ol’ ADOT Ranch, a bucolic slice of heaven somewhere near Sunflower, we were gazing at a map of Arizona the other day and it hit us that a whole lot of Arizonans come from someplace else. 

Duh. This is not news. 

For most, but not all, of us our birth certificate may be housed in a dusty file somewhere in Ohio, Illinois or some other state similarly blessed with too darn much snow. 

Because of this unassailable demographic reality, Arizona is a melting pot of terms; in other words, the words we use to identify common things. 

In Michigan, for example, a carbonated beverage is often called “pop." Whereas in Georgia, you get a Coke even if it’s really a root beer. And other states, people drink "soda."

What does this have to do with ADOT? Glad you asked. These idiosyncrasies extend to transportation and they have some newsworthiness as well. 

For example, State Route 24 in the East Valley of the metro Phoenix area is also known as the Gateway Freeway connected to the Loop 202 Santan Freeway. Or, at least it will be when planned regional funding is available to add more lanes. But for now the new extension of SR 24 past Ellsworth Road will operate as an expressway. Now, some people call every freeway an “expressway” -- our friends in Michigan come to mind -- but in Arizona, there actually is a significant distinction. 

While freeways such as I-10 or Loop 101 are roadways with multiple lanes, limited access and travel either above or under surface streets, expressways have controlled intersections with some streets. And as noted above, typically this is done as a stopgap measure until the road can be upgraded to a full freeway. In fact, the SR 51 freeway began its existence as an expressway way back in the mid-1980s. 

(We’ll try not to muddy the waters any further by mentioning SR 51 was actually called a parkway for a while, but it was basically the same thing. We also define the difference between a freeway and a highway here. Does your brain hurt yet? Ours does…)

As you travel SR 24 you may win a few trivia bets by telling your friends you drove on both a freeway and expressway with the same name. If that’s not excitement, we don’t know what is. 

Yes, we need a life. 

We who oversee the ADOT blog love it when new constructions gets underway, mainly because we get to dive deep into the process of taking a project from idea to fully finished road.

That's the case right now with the interim expansion of State Route 24 from Ellsworth Road to Ironwood Drive in the southeast Valley. Preliminary work kicked off before the holidays, but now that it's a new year, drivers can expect to see construction in earnest. 

Which brings us once again around to taking a look at highway construction. Part of the work people might see happening right now is construction of a box culvert near Williams Field. 

Okay, so box culverts. You've probably seen them all your life, but haven't given them much thought. We don't blame you. On the scale of engineering complexity, their design is kind of simple. But that contrasts with their function, which is an all important concern when it comes to road building: moving water. The purpose of a culvert is to help water flow along a channel in such a way to keep it from washing away a road or a bridge. They can come in a variety of shapes - for example round or square - and materials - like either concrete or metal. Depending on a variety of factors such as an expected flow of water, you can have one culvert or multiple ones together. 

We think you get the point. Box cuverts: simple, yet super important. Let's now tie it back to where we started, the ones being built on SR 24 near Williams Field.

The photo here gives you a little perspective on how you go about installing culverts. For reference, the image you see is the inside of the culvert. One of the first things you'll notice is the wooden bracing inside. As we told you about in another blog, that's called falsework. It's job is to help hold up the shape of the culvert until the cement is dried and the whole thing is self supporting. That's what happening here; cement was being poured for the walls and deck the day this photo was taken. 

The blog we just mentioned will also teach you about sand jacks and how the falsework is removed after the cement sets. We may be a bit biased, but we think its pretty fascinating.

With construction expected to last through fall of 2020, expect to see more work like this as we extend two lanes of highway in each direction between Ironwood and Ellsworth, and add bridges over Ellsworth and Mountain roads with additional intersections at Williams Field, Signal Butte and Meridian roads. And, as with all highway projects, you can sign up for traffic alerts and other updates on the project page on the ADOT website. 

If this small glimpse has not scratched your box culvert itch, you can check out the full Flickr gallery of the construction below.

Those of you with younger siblings might remember being able to them push around ... that is, until they hit a growth spurt and suddenly they towered over you.

We think State Route 24 is soon going to feel like that not-so-little-anymore sibling.

For years, SR 24 has been the runt of the state highway system, a 1-mile whelp of a freeway that serves drivers in the southeast Valley. Don't get us wrong, it's an important connection that has helped people coming and going from east Mesa, Queen Creek and Santan Valley. Now it's time for it to grow up a little.

Work on extending the road to Ironwood Drive – adding some five new miles of road – has already started. This is an interim expansion. This section of SR 24 is starting as a four-lane divided highway, with it slated to be built out as a full-fledged freeway in the future, as outlined in the the Maricopa Association of Government's regional transportation plan. We guess you could say that, in highway terms, that makes it a teenager.

Right now everthing that's happening is preliminary work, things such as environmental surveys and preparing the corridor for the eventual construction. But expect to see road work begin in earnest in early 2021. Work is anticipated to continue through fall of 2022, or between 20 and 24 months. 

In addition to extending two lanes of highway in each direction between Ironwood and Ellsworth, the project will add bridges over Ellsworth and Mountain roads with additional intersections at Williams Field, Signal Butte and Meridian roads. 

With growth always comes some growing pains. Drivers should expect several months of traffic restrictions at Ellsworth to build the new bridges, along with lane closures and detours at other important road crossings. Most of the construction is scheduled Monday through Friday during the day, but there will be some night and weekend work required for bridge work, concrete pouring, asphalt paving and other temperature-sensitive activities. 

If you want to keep track of SR 24's growth, you can sign up for traffic alerts and other updates on the project's page on our website. Don't be surprised if you also see us post photos on this blog from time to time.

We are excited for the improved travel times and accessiblity the expansion is projected to bring to the area and think that those living out that way will like what they see once everything is wrapped up.

Our only concern is that SR 24's growth spurt just might make the 3.5-mile State Route 143 jealous... 

By Caroline Carpenter / ADOT Communications

We could make a long story short and just tell you which Arizona highways are the longest and the shortest, but like many stories the answer isn’t quite that easy.

Longest Arizona highway

At 517 miles long, US 191 is Arizona’s longest highway. It starts in southern Arizona, near the Mexico border. The road continues north to the Utah state line, where it ends at milepost 517. The longest interstate in Arizona is Interstate 10, stretching 391 miles across the state and passing through both Phoenix and Tucson.

Shortest Arizona highway

The Grand Canyon state has many shorter highways, including the six-mile long State Route 587 in central Arizona and State Routes 473 and 564, both under 10 miles. The shortest, at 1.5 miles, is State Route 24 in Mesa. It's the newest highway in the state system and officially opened two years ago. SR 24 connects Loop 202 Santan Freeway and Ellsworth Road near Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. This highway won't always be the shortest, as it eventually will connect with the proposed North-South transportation corridor planned for Pinal County.

At less than five miles, the second-shortest highway is State Route 143, otherwise known at the Hohokam Expressway, in Phoenix.

A map of Arizona's highway system is available on az511.gov.

You don’t often have the chance to walk, bike or skate on a highway…

But yesterday, many people did just that as ADOT and the city of Mesa hosted a celebration on the soon-to-be-opened Gateway Freeway (SR 24). The new one-mile stretch was the site of a ribbon-cutting ceremony and public “open house” (see slideshow above).

More about SR 24

You might remember that it was nearly two years ago when we told you about the start of construction on SR 24 and how the city of Mesa accelerated the start of construction by several years through a transportation bonding-program.

Now that the road is just about finished (ADOT plans to complete construction and open the freeway to motorists early next month), drivers soon will be able to use SR 24 to connect directly from the Loop 202 Santan Freeway to Ellsworth Road near Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. The new section will improve access to the nearby airport and other local businesses and housing developments.

At yesterday’s event, ADOT Director John Halikowski said future plans call for extending SR 24 when regional and state funding is available.

“It will connect to the proposed North-South transportation corridor currently being planned in Pinal County,” said Halikowski. “Ultimately, the freeway will link this region – its airport, businesses and communities – to the statewide highway system and what we call the Key Commerce Corridors. These are the routes that will help boost trade and job growth, ensuring Arizona’s seat at the table of the global economy.”

For more on SR 24, revisit some of our previous posts.