PHOENIX – As the widening project along US 60 between State Route 77 and 40th Street in Show Low wraps up for the winter, drivers should budget extra time early next week as crews stripe the road and put the traffic signal at US 60 and SR 77 in its final configuration.

Beginning Monday, Dec. 18, crews will put down final striping along US 60 in the project area. This must be done during the day, as overnight temperatures are too cold to apply the striping material. Striping work is expected to last a few days.

On Tuesday, Dec. 19, the traffic signals at the intersection of US 60 and SR 77, known locally as Penrod Road, will be shut off as crews work to program the new signal timing to accommodate the new road configuration. The signal will be shut down at 8 a.m. A uniformed officer will direct traffic through the intersection. Drivers should budget extra time and be prepared for delays.

The signal work is expected to be completed by the end of the day on Tuesday, Dec. 19.

Crews will return next summer to lay the final layer of asphalt and complete some sidewalk and landscaping work.

PHOENIX – Drivers should budget extra time and consider an alternate route between the Phoenix area and Rim Country, especially on the weekends, with State Route 87 reduced to one lane in each direction south of Payson for a critically needed project that is repairing a section of highway and stabilizing the terrain around it.

The Arizona Department of Transportation work zone is near Slate Creek, about 25 miles south of Payson between mileposts 223 and 226. The lane restrictions are in place around the clock through the fall, though ADOT plans to lift the lane closures over Labor Day weekend.

As an alternative, drivers may want to consider taking SR 260 between Interstate 17 at Camp Verde and Payson, especially on weekends.

The SR 87 project is part of a larger effort to repair infrastructure damage and stabilize the terrain after devices used to measure ground movement registered some movement in slopes next to the highway. Over the next several months, crews will move nearly 27,000 cubic yards of dirt from along the northbound side of the highway to a location downhill.

A paving project on another main route to the White Mountains is now scheduled to start Monday, July 24. Crews will be paving US 60 through the Salt River Canyon area between Globe and Show Low. The work will take place Mondays through Fridays in segments through the 16-mile project area. The highway will be restricted to one lane with flagging operations guiding vehicles through the work zone, and drivers should be prepared for delays of up to 30 minutes.

The Salt River Canyon Rest Area will also temporarily close to the public for about two weeks beginning Sunday, July 23.

 

SURPRISE – When spring training baseball returns to Surprise Stadium on Saturday, fans will benefit from a new interchange at Grand Avenue (US 60) and Bell Road made possible by residents of Maricopa County.

In partnership with the city of Surprise, Federal Highway Administration and Maricopa Association of Governments, the regional transportation planning agency, the Arizona Department of Transportation began building the $41.9 million interchange after the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers headed off last year for the regular season. As ADOT planned, the new interchange is ready for the first pitch of 2017.

A bridge carrying Bell Road over Grand Avenue and the BNSF Railway tracks opened in November in time for the holiday shopping season. Ramps connecting the bridge and Grand Avenue opened earlier this month.

“What a difference a year makes,” ADOT Director John Halikowski said. “Residents and businesses in Surprise, as well as those heading out to enjoy spring training baseball,are seeing how a transportation system improves the quality of life in a community and in this region.” 

Finishing touches on the project are scheduled to be completed in early March, when crews replace temporary lane stripes on fresh pavement with permanent striping and complete landscaping and drainage work.

The project is funded as part of the Maricopa Association of Governments’ Regional Transportation Plan approved by county voters in 2004. Funding sources include a countywide half-cent sales tax for road and transit improvements as well as the Phoenix region’s share of federal and state transportation funds.

SURPRISE – Drivers now can skip detour routes and make direct connections between Grand Avenue (US 60) and Bell Road after the Arizona Department of Transportation opened all four ramps Thursday at the Valley’s newest highway interchange.

The new on- and off-ramps extend from the center median area along Grand Avenue to the recently completed Bell Road bridge as part of a $41.9 million project that started just over a year ago. Traffic signals on the overpass regulate turns between the ramps and Bell Road.

“This is about planning ahead, thinking outside the box and keeping promises,” said Dallas Hammit, ADOT’s state engineer and deputy director for transportation. “The project team did a great job opening the Bell Road bridge in November and now completing the new Grand Avenue ramps before the start of Cactus League play at Surprise Stadium, as we had pledged to do.”

The new interchange improves the flow of traffic by replacing the old ground-level intersection that was plagued by long lines and delays, especially when Bell Road drivers needed to cross both Grand Avenue and the parallel BNSF Railway tracks. The Bell Road bridge now travels over Grand Avenue and the railroad tracks.

Surprise Mayor Sharon Wolcott called the project a perfect example of community involvement and agency cooperation to limit impacts on businesses, local residents and visitors.

“After hearing from residents and the business community, we worked with ADOT to create a shortened project schedule to mitigate the impacts during spring training and last year’s holiday shopping season,” Wolcott said. “Thanks to a collaborative approach we have achieved those goals. I sincerely appreciate everyone who played a role in making this happen.”

Opening the new ramps means drivers aren’t required to use temporary detour routes, including Dysart and Litchfield roads, to get to and from Bell Road and Grand Avenue. 

The Bell/Grand interchange design is known as a median urban diamond, with connections at the center rather than ramps to the right of Grand Avenue’s travel lanes or other possible configurations. The benefits of this design include minimizing the impact on neighboring shopping centers and businesses by not requiring the ADOT to acquire as much property.

The entire project is expected to be completed by early March after crews replace temporary lane stripes on fresh pavement with permanent striping. Landscaping and drainage system work also will be finished in the coming weeks.

The project is funded as part of the Maricopa Association of Governments’ Regional Transportation Plan approved by county voters in 2004. Funding sources include a countywide half-cent sales tax for road and transit improvements as well as the Phoenix region’s share of federal and state transportation funds.

SURPRISE – When drivers begin using ramps to and from Grand Avenue (US 60) at the new Bell Road bridge this week, the connections will be from the center of Grand Avenue.

The $41.9 million interchange, where ramps are scheduled to open Thursday, Feb. 16, is what’s called a median urban diamond, which has connections at the center rather than ramps to the right of Grand Avenue travel lanes or other possible configurations. The benefits of this design include minimizing the impact on neighboring shopping centers and businesses by not requiring the Arizona Department of Transportation to acquire as much property.

Drivers using the new interchange should pay attention to signs and other traffic-control devices, including the new traffic signals on the Bell Road bridge. Motorists using the new Grand Avenue on-ramps should use caution when merging with other traffic on US 60.

After ADOT opened the Bell Road bridge as promised before the start of the holiday shopping season, opening ramps to and from Grand Avenue before the start of spring training baseball games at nearby Surprise Stadium represents another key milestone.

Construction of the Bell/Grand interchange began a year ago. The entire project is expected to be completed by early March after crews replace temporary lane stripes on fresh pavement with permanent striping. Landscaping and drainage system work also will be finished in the coming weeks.

The project is funded as part of the Maricopa Association of Governments’ Regional Transportation Plan approved by county voters in 2004. Funding sources include a countywide half-cent sales tax for road and transit improvements as well as the Phoenix region’s share of federal and state transportation funds.

PHOENIX – Drivers have a wider, safer US 60 climbing west from Superior, a new bridge that will eliminate flooding closures on US 95 near Yuma and a rehabilitated Virgin River Bridge No. 6 on Interstate 15 thanks to just some of the Arizona Department of Transportation projects completed this year in Greater Arizona.

More is on the way in 2017, including widening the last section of State Route 260 between Interstate 17 and Cottonwood, and starting work on a bridge carrying State Route 347 over railroad tracks in Maricopa.

After months of regularly scheduled blasting closures, those using US 60 between Superior and Globe now have an westbound passing lane on the grade between Oak Flat and Devil’s Canyon (mileposts 230 to 232). Other improvements along this stretch include a wider shoulder at Devil’s Canyon and bridge improvements at Waterfall Canyon near milepost 229. The projects also removed overhanging rocks that have posed the danger of rock falling during heavy rain.

This work was part of $65 million in US 60 improvements that also include ongoing work to convert the last remaining two-lane roadway segment between Phoenix and Superior into four-lane divided highway (mileposts 222-227 just west of Superior) and a project that installed LED lighting in the Queen Creek Tunnel at milepost 228.

Along I-15 in far northwestern Arizona, ADOT completed a $27 million rehabilitation of Virgin River Bridge No. 6 that replaced girders, decks and railings and widened the roadway at the bridge. This was the centerpiece of $50 million in upgrades that also included paving all 29 miles of I-15 in Arizona and repairing the decks of three other bridges in the Virgin River Gorge corridor.

Until late 2016, flash floods could cause closures of US 95 at Fortuna Wash near Yuma – no small problem considering that the wash lies between the city and Yuma County’s largest employer, Yuma Proving Ground. Today, motorists using this key trade route between the U.S. and Mexico cross Fortuna Wash on a $9.3 million, 600-foot bridge. Final work on the bridge and this stretch of US 95 will continue until spring.

Among other highlights in Greater Arizona, ADOT completed a major project to improve mobility and safety along US 89 through the Navajo Nation community of Cameron north of Flagstaff. The $36.7 million project replaced two bridges over the Little Colorado River, widened four miles of highway, added a roundabout at the junction with State Route 64, and installed sidewalks and underpasses.

On State Route 89 between Chino Valley and Interstate 40, ADOT completed a new $14.4 million bridge at Hell Canyon featuring 12-foot lanes and 10-foot shoulders to better accommodate oversize loads and commercial vehicles. Replacing a now-dismantled bridge built in 1954 that no longer met state and federal design standards for larger and heavier vehicles, the new structure is 665 feet long and has four spans to carry the load.

In spring 2017, work is to begin on a project widening nine miles of SR 260 (mileposts 209-218) to modern four-lane divided highway from Interstate 17 west to Thousand Trails Road. This $62 million project also will install seven roundabouts at major cross streets.

Late in 2017, ADOT plans to begin work on a $55 million project in Maricopa that will realign SR 347 between Desert Cedars Drive and Hathaway Avenue and create a bridge carrying the highway over Union Pacific railroad tracks where dozens of trains pass each day. A $15 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant and a $15 million local contribution have helped ADOT move forward sooner on this project than originally planned. 

For information about other current and planned projects in Greater Arizona, visit azdot.gov/projects.