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Interstate 40 in Arizona

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Interstate Highway in Arizona This article is about the section of Interstate 40 in Arizona. For the entire route, see Interstate 40.
Interstate 40 markerInterstate 40
Purple Heart Trail
I-40 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by ADOT
Length359.11 mi (577.93 km)
Existed1960–present
NHSEntire route
Major junctions
West end I-40 at California state line
Major intersections
East end I-40 at New Mexico state line
Location
CountryUnited States
StateArizona
CountiesMohave, Yavapai, Coconino, Navajo, Apache
Highway system
  • Arizona State Highway System
← SR 30→ SR 50

Interstate 40 (I-40) is an east–west Interstate Highway that has a 359.11-mile (577.93 km) section in the US state of Arizona, connecting sections in California and New Mexico. The Interstate is also referred to as the Purple Heart Trail to honor those wounded in combat who have received the Purple Heart. It enters Arizona from the west at a crossing of the Colorado River southwest of Kingman. It travels eastward across the northern portion of the state, connecting the cities of Kingman, Ash Fork, Williams, Flagstaff, Winslow, and Holbrook. I-40 continues into New Mexico, heading to Albuquerque. The highway has major junctions with U.S. Route 93 (US 93; the main highway connecting Phoenix and Las Vegas, Nevada) in Kingman and again approximately 22 miles (35 km) to the east and I-17 (the freeway linking Phoenix to northern Arizona) in Flagstaff.

For the majority of its routing through Arizona, I-40 follows the historic alignment of US 66. The lone exception is a stretch between Kingman and Ash Fork where US 66 took a more northerly, less direct route that is now State Route 66 (SR 66). Construction of I-40 was ongoing in the 1960s and 1970s and reached completion in 1984. With the completion of I-40 in 1984, the entire routing of US 66 had been bypassed by Interstate Highways which led to its decertification a year later in 1985.

Route description

California to Flagstaff

I-40 westbound toward LA, nearing the I-17 junction and exit 195 in Arizona

I-40 enters Arizona from California at a bridge that crosses the Colorado River at Topock in Mohave County. It heads east from Topock and begins to curve toward the north at Franconia, completing the curve at Yucca. The Interstate continues to head north until it reaches Kingman. In this city, I-40 has a junction with US 93 at exit 48. US 93 heads toward the northwest from this interchange to Hoover Dam and Las Vegas. US 93 south begins to run concurrently with I-40 east as they both swing eastward through Kingman. The two later separate at exit 71 as US 93 heads toward the south toward Phoenix while I-40 continues east toward Flagstaff. Along the way, I-40 passes through the town of Seligman, then, at Ash Fork, it meets SR 89, the former U.S. Route that heads south to Prescott. Next, it passes through Williams, where it has an interchange with SR 64 (exit 165), which heads north toward Grand Canyon National Park. I-40 continues to the east to Flagstaff, where it has a major junction with I-17 at exit 195. I-17 heads south from this interchange to Phoenix.

Flagstaff to New Mexico

East of Flagstaff, I-40 heads toward the east-southeast direction as it goes through the town of Winslow. It continues toward this direction until it reaches Holbrook, where it curves toward the northeast. Along this stretch, it passes through Petrified Forest National Park and continues to the northeast, passing through Chambers, and enters the Navajo Nation. The highway still continues to the northeast to the New Mexico border southwest of Gallup, New Mexico, as it continues on toward Albuquerque.

History

With the exception of a stretch between Kingman and Flagstaff, I-40 directly replaced the famed US 66 across northern Arizona. Where possible, US 66 was upgraded to Interstate standards to become I-40 directly. Exceptions to this were through the central business districts of the cities and towns that US 66 passed through, and I-40 had to be built as a bypass outside the cities. On October 26, 1984, after the last section of I-40 was completed in Williams, US 66 was removed from the state highway system of Arizona. The portions through cities that did not overlap I-40 would become business loops of I-40.

Before the U.S. Routes

The routing of a road near the current corridor of I-40 in Arizona was first surveyed and built between 1857 and 1859. Lt. Edward Beale and his soldiers built the road along the 35th parallel that would come to be known as the Beale Wagon Road from Fort Smith, Arkansas, to the Colorado River to serve as a military wagon road. The road was a popular route for immigrants during the 1860s and 1870s until the transcontinental railroad was built across northern Arizona in the 1880s. In the early 1900s, the road became part of the National Old Trails Road, a transcontinental route from Baltimore, Maryland, to California, and the National Park to Park Highway, an auto trail linking the national parks of the west.

U.S. Route 66

Main article: U.S. Route 66 in Arizona

In the 1920s, as a nationwide system of highways called the United States Numbered Highways was being developed, the route through was given the designation of US 60. This designation was controversial since designations that are multiples of 10 are assigned to transcontinental east–west routes and this route was a diagonal route from Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles, California. As a compromise to states east of Chicago that felt US 60 should go through their state, a different route was given the number 60, while the route from Chicago to Los Angeles was given the number 66.

I-40 westbound heading toward Flagstaff

By 1927, the routing of US 66 through Arizona had been laid out, but none of it had been paved yet. By 1935, nearly the entire route had been paved, with the lone exceptions being a short stretch northeast of Valentine and a stretch between Peach Springs and Seligman. By 1938, the entire route in Arizona had been paved. In 1953, US 66 was realigned between the California border and Kingman to an alignment to the southeast to avoid the mountain curves and grades of the original alignment. By 1961, several sections of the highway had been expanded to a four-lane divided highway in anticipation of the coming Interstate Highway. Four-lane sections included a section near Ash Fork, another section east of Winslow, and a section east of Holbrook near the Petrified Forest National Monument.

Planning

In Flagstaff, several different alternatives were considered as a potential routing of the new Interstate through the area. The alternatives consisted of a routing north of downtown, south of downtown, through downtown along the Santa Fe Railroad right-of-way near the alignment of US 66, and a more elaborate alternative of a routing above downtown on a long overpass. In January 1959, the Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce recommended to the Bureau of Public Roads that the route south of downtown be used which was approved by the Flagstaff City Council and the Board of Supervisors for Coconino County. This recommendation was accepted and would become the planned routing of I-40 in Flagstaff. Business owners along US 66 were opposed to this routing as it would draw motorists away from main through route of the time, US 66. As a result, they created the No By-Pass Committee and sent a proposal to the Chamber of Commerce's Roads and Highways Committee to conduct a study of the feasibility of a route for I-40 through downtown along the Santa Fe railroad right-of-way. The Committee sent an inquiry to the railroad concerning the proposal. The railroad rejected the proposed rerouting of their main rail lines, citing that it would result in worse grades than what currently exists, and, in order to reduce those grades, considerable lengthening of the rail line would be required. With a routing through town now out of the question, the business owners along US 66 drafted a city ordinance, known as Initiative 200, that was filed with the city of Flagstaff in November 1959 to appear on the general election ballot in March 1960. The ordinance would, in effect, ban all new commercial businesses on I-40, all routes leading from I-40 to US 66, and the area between I-40 and US 66. In a record voter turnout, voters overwhelmingly voted against the ordinance by a vote of 2,280 to 556.

In 1965, the routing of I-40 west of Kingman was being reconsidered from the planned route through Needles, California, to a route to the north passing through Searchlight in southern Nevada and connecting with I-15 further north of its present connection with I-15. The rationale for the proposal was that it would be an overall shorter route and would cost much less to construct. The proposal was met with stiff opposition, including all four US senators from California and Arizona sending the Secretary of Commerce letters requesting that the routing through Needles be retained. This proposal was eventually abandoned in 1966, and the routing through Needles was kept.

Construction

I-40 near the New Mexico border

The construction of the 360-mile (580 km) route of I-40 across Arizona took nearly 25 years to complete with the last segment being completed in 1984, much longer than the ambitious goal of finishing by 1972. By the end of 1960, 15 miles (24 km) had been completed with an additional 23 miles (37 km) being worked on. In 1964, construction was still on schedule with 58 miles (93 km) complete and an additional 71 miles (114 km) under construction. Funding was becoming an issue at this time as the state lacked the available funds to stay on pace with a 1972 completion goal. By 1967, Arizona had completed almost half of the highway with 155.3 miles (249.9 km) complete and another 82.4 miles (132.6 km) under construction. In 1968, the bypass around Flagstaff was complete with three interchanges, two at each end of where US 66 split off from I-40 to enter the city and one at the I-17 interchange. An additional interchange at Butler Avenue was completed a year later. One of the big improvements of I-40 over US 66 was the construction of the segment between Kingman and Ash Fork. The 94-mile (151 km) section is a more direct route between the two cities and travels as far as 20 miles (32 km) south of the US 66 alignment, bypassing Hackberry and Peach Springs and creating ghost-towns. Construction of the $69.1 million (equivalent to $398 million in 2023) segment was also to be a much safer route as the US 66 alignment had one of the highest fatality rates of any section of highway in Arizona. This section of the Interstate was complete in 1978. Construction of the $7.7 million (equivalent to $30.2 million in 2023) bypass around Winslow began in 1977. I-40 was completed in Arizona in 1984, with the completion of a six-mile (9.7 km) section in Williams. This was also the last section of US 66 to be bypassed by the Interstate, which led to it being decertified by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) the following year.

Exit list

CountyLocationmikmExitDestinationsNotes
Colorado River0.000.00
I-40 west – Los Angeles		Continuation into California
Arizona–California line
Mohave​0.550.891Historic US 66 east – Golden Shores, OatmanTo SR 95 north
​2.994.812Needle Mountain Road
​9.7915.769
SR 95 south – Lake Havasu City, Parker
​13.1621.1813Franconia Road
​20.1432.4120Santa Fe Ranch Road
Yucca25.1940.5425Alamo RoadNo eastbound entrance
26.1842.1326Proving Ground RoadNo westbound entrance
​28.7546.2728Old Trails Road
​37.0359.5937Griffith Road
McConnico44.3271.3344 Historic US 66 (Historic Route 66)Former US 66
Kingman48.8678.6348


US 93 north (Beale Street) to SR 68 west – Las Vegas		Current west end of US 93 overlap; Beale Street is former US 466
49
Future I-11 north / US 93 – Las Vegas		Future semi-directional T interchange; future west end of US 93 overlap; I-11 routing is proposed to follow US 93; construction set to begin in 2024; to be westbound exit and eastbound entrance; eastbound exit and westbound entrance will be built in the future
51.6983.1951Stockton Hill Road
53.0785.4153 SR 66 / Historic US 66 (Andy Devine Avenue) – Kingman AirportFormer BL 40 south; former US 66
57Rancho Santa Fe ParkwayPlanned interchange
​59.2195.2959 CR 259 (DW Ranch Road)
​66.02106.2566Blake Ranch Road
​71.52115.1071
Future I-11 south / US 93 south – Wickenburg, Phoenix		East end of Future I-11/US 93 overlap
​78.90126.9879Silver Springs Road
​87.01140.0387Willows Ranch Road
​91.12146.6491Fort Rock Road
Yavapai​95.45153.6196Cross Mountain Road
​102.99165.75103Jolly Road
​109.07175.53109Anvil Rock Road
Seligman120.49193.91121


BL 40 east to SR 66 / Historic US 66 – Seligman, Peach Springs		Former US 66 east
122.72197.50123


BL 40 west to SR 66 / Historic US 66 – Seligman, Peach Springs		Former US 66 west
​139.28224.15139
Historic US 66 west (Crookton Road)		Former US 66 west
Ash Fork144.37232.34144
BL 40 / Historic US 66 east – Ash Fork		Former US 66 east
145.69234.47146

SR 89 south / BL 40 / Historic US 66 west – Prescott, Ash Fork		Former US 66 west/US 89 south
Coconino​147.68237.67148County Line Road
​148.57239.10149Monte Carlo Road
​151.23243.38151Welch Road
​157.20252.99157Devil Dog Road
Williams161.38259.72161
BL 40 / Historic US 66 east – Williams, Grand Canyon		Former US 66 east/US 89 north
162.95262.24163Williams, Grand Canyon National Park
165.41266.20165


BL 40 west / Historic US 66 west / SR 64 north – Williams, Grand Canyon		I-40 BL is former US 66 west/US 89 south
167.09268.91167Garland Prairie Road / Circle Pines Road
Parks171.10275.36171Deer Farm Road (CR 146) / Pittman Valley Road
177.81286.16178Parks Road
Bellemont183.66295.57184Camp NavajoProposed interchange
184.68297.21185Hughes Avenue – BellemontFormerly signed for Transwestern Road
​190.10305.94190A-1 Mountain Road
​191.26307.80191
BL 40 / Historic US 66 east		Former US 66 east/US 89 north; access to United States Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station
​192.12309.19192Flagstaff Ranch Road
Flagstaff193.47311.36194Woody Mountain RoadProposed interchange
194.63–
195.25		313.23–
314.22		195


I-17 south / SR 89A to US 180 north – Sedona, Phoenix, Flagstaff		I-17 exits 340A-B; northern terminus of I-17; SR 89 north is former SR 79
196.70316.56197Lone Tree RoadProposed interchange on new alignment east of current Lone Tree Road underpass
197.86318.42198Butler Avenue
200.65322.91201


BL 40 / US 180 west (Country Club Drive) to US 89 north – Flagstaff, Page		West end of US 180 overlap; eastbound signed as "US 89 north – Page" only
204.42328.98204
Historic US 66 west – Walnut Canyon National Monument		Former US 66 west; Walnut Canyon National Monument access via former SR 166
​206.79332.80207Cosnino Road (CR 510C)
​210.72339.12211WinonaAccess via CR 510
​219.13352.66219Twin Arrows
​224.60361.46225Buffalo Range Road
​230.01370.17230Two Guns
​233.43375.67233Meteor Crater Road
​239.22384.99239Meteor City Road
​244.94394.19245
SR 99 north – Leupp		West end of SR 99 overlap
NavajoWinslow251.58404.88252

BS 40 west / SR 99 south / Historic US 66 (Hipkoe Drive)		East end of SR 99 overlap; Former I-40 BL east
253.08407.29253N. Park Drive
255.21410.72255Transcon LaneFormer I-40 BL west
​257.16413.86257

SR 87 south / Historic US 66 east – Payson, Second Mesa
​264.18425.16264Hibbard Road
​269.43433.61269Jackrabbit Road
Joseph City274.19441.27274
BL 40 / Historic US 66 east – Joseph City		Former US 66 east
276.55445.06277
BL 40 / Historic US 66 west – Joseph City		Former US 66 west
​280.13450.83280Hunt Road / Geronimo Road
Holbrook283.13455.65283Perkins Valley Road
284.67458.13285


BL 40 / US 180 / Historic US 66 east (Hopi Drive) to SR 77 south – Show Low, Petrified Forest National Park		East end of US 180 overlap; former US 66 east; signed as I-40 BL (Hopi Drive) only westbound
286.38460.88286




BL 40 (Navajo Boulevard) / SR 77 south to US 180 east / SR 377 south – Show Low, Heber		West end of SR 77 overlap; Former US 66; Historic US 66 is unsigned at this exit
289.00465.10289
BL 40 (Navajo Boulevard) / Historic US 66 west		Former US 66 west
​292.32470.44292
SR 77 north – Indian Wells		East end of SR 77 overlap
​294.03473.20294Sun Valley Road
​299.67482.27300Goodwater
​303.09487.78303Adamana Road
ApachePetrified Forest NP311.06500.60311Petrified Forest National Park
​319.49514.17320Pinta Road
​325.41523.70325Navajo
​329.49530.26330McCarrell Road
Chambers333.04535.98333
US 191 north – Ganado		West end of US 191 overlap; former SR 63
Sanders339.00545.57339
US 191 south – St. Johns		East end of US 191 overlap; former US 666 south
​341.33549.32341Ortega Road
​343.32552.52343Querino Road
​346.05556.91346Pine Springs Road
​347.65559.49348St. Anselm Road – Houck
​350.85564.64351Allentown Road
​354.11569.88354Hawthorne Road
​357.02574.57357
BIA Route 12 north – Window Rock
Lupton358.69577.26359Grants Road – Rest AreaFormer US 66 east; Rest Area not signed eastbound
​359.11577.93
I-40 east – Albuquerque		Continuation into New Mexico; former US 666 north
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

  1. ^ "2008 State Highway System Log" (PDF). Arizona Department of Transportation. December 31, 2008. Retrieved April 21, 2008.
  2. "Veterans attend re-naming of I-40 as 'Purple Heart Trail'". Prescott Valley Tribune. September 28, 2004. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
  3. Arizona Department of Transportation (October 26, 1984). "ADOT Right-of-Way Resolutions 1984-10-A-064, 1984-10-A-065, 1984-10-A-066, 1984-10-A-067". Arizona Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 21, 2008.
  4. Arizona Department of Transportation. Good Roads Everywhere: A History of Road Building in Arizona. Archived from the original on April 12, 2008. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
  5. Weingroff, Richard. "From Names to Numbers: The Origins of the U.S. Numbered Highway System". Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
  6. Auto Road Map of Arizona and New Mexico (Map). Rand McNally. 1927. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
  7. Road Map of Arizona (Map). Arizona State Highway Department. 1935. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
  8. Auto Road Map of Arizona and New Mexico (Map). Rand McNally. 1938. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
  9. Road Map of Arizona (Map). Rand McNally. 1961. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
  10. Lowery, Dennis (March 1, 1960). "Initiative Part of Bigger Dispute". Arizona Daily Sun. p. 1.
  11. "Relocation Here Impossible, SF Says". Arizona Daily Sun. May 20, 1959. p. 1.
  12. Lowery, Dennis (February 29, 1960). "Initiative 200 Brews Up a Storm". Arizona Daily Sun. p. 1.
  13. "Flagstaff City Election Results". Arizona Daily Sun. March 10, 1960. p. 5.
  14. "Needles Future at Stake in Routing of Highway 40". The Independent. Pasadena, California. November 4, 1965.
  15. "Interstate 40 Routing Plea Made". Los Angeles Times. September 9, 1965. p. A10.
  16. "Needles Wins Its Fight to Keep Interstate 40". Los Angeles Times. February 3, 1966. p. 3.
  17. Lesure, Thomas (December 11, 1960). "Arizona Highway Dream Comes True". The New York Times. p. XX20.
  18. "I-40 Work On Schedule State Says". Yuma Daily Sun. September 22, 1964. p. 10.
  19. Lederer, Edith (September 22, 1967). "High Cost Highways:Funds Tie Ups Interstate String". Fresno Bee.
  20. "Butler Busy Center". Arizona Daily Sun. October 21, 1971. p. B7.
  21. ^ Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved November 30, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
  22. "Kingman, Ash Fork Cutoff Progressing". Arizona Daily Sun. March 2, 1971. p. 9.
  23. "Cutoff by interstate dooms Route 66". Arizona Republic. September 23, 1978. p. A-1. Retrieved August 9, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. "Sundt Gets Contract For Winslow Bypass". December 4, 1977. p. 3.
  25. "It's the End of the Road for Route 66". Philadelphia Inquirer. October 14, 1984. p. A17.
  26. "You Can No Longer Get Kicks on Route 66". Wichita Eagle. June 29, 1985. p. 1A.
  27. "US 93, I-40 West Kingman Traffic Interchange Project". Arizona Department of Transportation. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  28. "I-40: Rancho Santa Fe Traffic Interchange". Arizona Department of Transportation. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  29. ^ "3.0 Design Concept Alternatives" (PDF). Arizona Department of Transportation. August 2019. p. 1. Retrieved December 1, 2022.

External links

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Interstate 40
Previous state:
California 		Arizona Next state:
New Mexico
Auxiliary routes of Interstate 40
  • Former

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