Arizona State Route 202

State Loop 202
Route information
Maintained by ADOT
Length:	57.17 mi[1] (92.01 km)
Existed:	1990 – present
Major junctions
CCW end:	I-10 in Phoenix
	SR 51 in Phoenix Loop 101 in Mesa US 60 in Mesa SR 24 in Mesa Loop 101 in Chandler I-10 in Chandler
CW end:	Pecos Road in Ahwatukee
Location
Counties:	Maricopa
Highway system
Arizona Highways Interstate U.S. State Unconstructed Former ← SR 195 SR 210 →

State Route 202, or Loop 202, (spoken as two-oh-two) is a partial beltway looping around the eastern Phoenix metropolitan area of central Arizona. It traverses the eastern end of the city of Phoenix, in addition to Tempe, Mesa, Chandler, and Gilbert, making it very vital to the metropolitan area freeway system.

Loop 202 has various names along its route:

• Red Mountain Freeway from the Mini Stack Interchange in Phoenix to the SuperRedTan Interchange in Mesa
• Santan Freeway from the SuperRedTan Interchange to Maricopa Freeway (I-10) in Chandler
• South Mountain Freeway, which will connect Chandler to the Papago Freeway (I-10) in west Phoenix

Route description

The route currently begins at the Mini Stack interchange with Interstate 10 (I-10) and State Route 51 (SR 51) in Phoenix, and ends at I-10 near Ahwatukee.

Loop 202 consists of three sections. Two of these, the Red Mountain Freeway and the Santan Freeway, have been fully completed. The third section, known as the South Mountain Freeway, is in planning stages.

Red Mountain Freeway

The first section of Loop 202 to open was the Red Mountain Freeway. It runs from the I-10/SR 51 Mini Stack interchange to US  60. It passes over the Salt River and through Tempe and Mesa en route, with an interchange with Loop 101 in Tempe. The final segment of the freeway from Power Road to University Drive opened on July 21, 2008.^[2] This opening marked the completion of the original Regional Freeway System as approved by Maricopa County voters in 1985 by Proposition 300.^[3]

In 2006, this portion of Loop 202 was used to portray a Saudi Arabian superhighway in the 2007 film, The Kingdom. Filming also took place at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport and the Arizona State University Polytechnic Campus. The city of Mesa received $40,000 for the use of the freeway from NBC Universal.^[4]

As of October 2012, HOV lanes on the Red Mountain section run from I-10/SR 51 to Gilbert Road. In 2015, the HOV lanes were extended from Gilbert Road to Broadway Road. HOV lanes are planned to extend to US 60 in Mesa, eventually tying into planned HOV lanes on the Santan Freeway.

Santan Freeway

Completed in 2006,^[5] the Santan Freeway serves the southeast valley cities of Chandler, Gilbert, and Mesa. It provides access to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, the former Williams Air Force Base. Beginning at the SuperRedTan Interchange with US 60 in Mesa, the freeway runs south and turns westward in Gilbert near the airport. A few miles later the Santan is running in Chandler, where it has a junction with Loop 101 in the vicinity of the Chandler Fashion Center. Following this interchange, the Santan Freeway section of Loop 202 encounters its terminus at a stack interchange with I-10 near Ahwatukee.^[6]

The Santan section has HOV lanes between I-10/Pecos Rd. and Gilbert Rd. Long term plans call for HOV lanes to extend to US 60 and to the HOV lanes on the Red Mountain section.

History

The highway originally was assigned many different route numbers along its path. The portion of the Red Mountain Freeway west of the Pima/Price Freeways was formerly known as the "East Papago Freeway," and it was initially designated SR 217.^[7] The remainder of the Red Mountain Fwy. was to be SR 216.^[8] The San Tan Freeway was originally routed as SR 220.^[9] The South Mountain Freeway portion was initially supposed to be SR 218.^[10] The Loop 202 designation was first assigned in 1987, along the East Papago and Red Mountain Freeway corridors and the portion of the San Tan Freeway east of Price Road.^[11] At that time, the portion of Loop 202 west of Price Rd. was to become part of Loop 101.^[12] But in 1991, the proposed South Mountain Freeway was renumbered as part of Loop 202.^[13] Although the San Tan Freeway portion of Loop 101, from I-10 to Price Rd., has never officially been renumbered, this section has been signed as Loop 202 since its opening.

Future

The third segment of Loop 202, named the South Mountain Freeway, received final approval from the Federal Highway Administration, on March 10, 2015, with construction scheduled for completion as early as 2019.^[14][15]

Before that it was, and remains, the most controversial^[16] segment of the Loop 202 partial beltway. Construction was delayed due to tension between three groups: regional transportation planners, who insisted that the freeway is necessary to ensure smooth traffic flow in the coming decades;^[17] residents of the adjacent Ahwatukee community, who could lose 120 homes to eminent domain depending on the road's final alignment; and leaders and residents of the adjoining Gila River Indian Community (GRIC), who have oscillated between opposing and supporting the freeway in recent years.^[18]

The South Mountain Freeway has two distinct segments: the "eastern segment" that straddles the Ahwatukee-GRIC border and the "western segment" that will parallel 59th Avenue through the southwest Phoenix community of Laveen. Together, these segments would form a 21.9-mile bypass around Downtown Phoenix, linking the metropolitan area's southwestern and southeastern suburbs. The freeway as currently approved would begin at the existing four-level symmetrical stack interchange between I-10 and the Santan Freeway on the Chandler-Ahwatukee border and terminate at I-10 and 59th Avenue west of Downtown Phoenix.^[19]

The specific alignment of the freeway has been revised repeatedly since 1985, when Maricopa County voters originally approved its construction as part of the regional highway network envisioned under Proposition 300.^[20] In 1988, the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG), the region's transportation planning agency, suggested an alignment of the freeway's western segment along 55th Avenue and an alignment of the eastern segment along Pecos Road.^[21] A federal study in 2001 required ADOT to reexamine those suggestions, and the task of recommending the final alignment fell to a Citizen's Advisory Team formed in 2002. In April 2006, that panel released their final recommendations to route the western portion of the freeway four miles further west to connect with Loop 101, and to reject the proposed alignment of the eastern portion along Pecos Road, suggesting that the latter be built on Gila River Indian Community land instead.^[22][23] Two months later, ADOT overruled the panel's suggestion for the western segment and opted for the current 59th Avenue alignment instead.^[21]

In February 2012, a non-binding referendum was held in the Gila River Indian Community on whether the eastern portion of the freeway should be built on community land several miles south of Pecos Road. Options in the referendum were to build on community land, off community land, or not at all. The "no build" option won a plurality of votes, receiving 720 votes out of a total 1,481 cast.^[24] MAG sent out a press release soon after making it clear that construction of the freeway would move forward as planned along the Pecos Road alignment.^[17] Expecting this outcome, MAG and ADOT had previously (in 2010) shrunk the freeway's footprint from 10 lanes to eight to minimize its impact on Ahwatukee.^[25] Fearing the worst possible outcome of the freeway being built without exits onto community land (as would be the case with the Pecos Road alignment), Gila River Indian Community residents quickly formulated plans for a new referendum that would exclude the "no build" option, leaving only "yes on Gila River or no on Gila River."^[26] The tribal government rejected this proposal in July 2013.^[27]

As late as September 2013, the freeway still faced active opposition. A non-profit group called the Gila River Alliance for a Clean Environment filed a civil-rights complaint with ADOT in July, claiming the freeway would disproportionately and adversely affect tribe members. A freeway opposition group called Protecting Arizona's Resources and Children planned an environmental lawsuit.^[28] And the Environmental Protection Agency in August 2013 raised several objections to the state's 12-year, $21 million draft environmental impact statement that had deemed construction of the freeway to be more beneficial to the environment, by improving traffic flow and thus reducing pollution, than building no freeway at all. The EPA claimed that the statement contained overly optimistic traffic projections, did not sufficiently address air quality concerns, and could harm neighboring communities and environmental resources.^[29]

In March 2015, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) issued a Record of Decision approving the project and selecting a build alternative. ADOT immediately thereafter commenced right-of-way acquisition and the procurement of final design and construction services in the form of a design-build-maintain contractor or "developer." The developer will be selected at the end of 2015 and freeway construction will begin in early 2016, with the Chandler Boulevard extension project to facilitate local access beginning in summer 2015. The freeway is planned to be open to traffic in late 2019 or early 2020.^[30] However, new lawsuits in June 2015 from the group Protecting Arizona's Resources and Children, the Sierra Club, and the Gila River Indian Community threaten to delay the freeway's construction.^[31][32]

On August 26, 2015, ADOT started demolition of the first houses along the route for the South Mountain Freeway.^[33]

On February 27, 2016, the contract to design, build, and maintain the freeway was awarded to Connect 202 Partners, a joint venture led by Fluor Corporation, with Fluor, Granite Construction, Ames Construction, and Parsons Brinckerhoff being responsible for the final design and construction, and with Fluor and DBi Services, LLC being responsible for maintenance for 30 years.^[34]

A six-mile stretch of the freeway, from 40th St to 17th Ave, will include a 16 foot wide bike path. The path will be on the south side of the freeway and will also be open to pedestrians. The path was included because the existing roadway had been a popular cycling route for years.^[35]

The first phase of construction of the South Mountain Freeway segment of Loop 202 began on September 19, 2016 with improvements to the I-10/Loop 202 Santan interchange.^[36]

Exit list

Exit numbers of the South Mountain Freeway portion are approximate. The entire route is in Maricopa County.

Location	mi [1][37][38]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Phoenix	0.00	0.00	Begin Red Mountain Freeway
				I-10 west – Los Angeles	Counterclockwise terminus; exit 147A on I-10
	0.28	0.45	1A	I-10 east / SR 51 north – Tucson, Sky Harbor Airport	Mini Stack; westbound exit and eastbound entrance; south end of SR 51
	0.31	0.50	—	I-10 west	HOV interchange; westbound exit and eastbound entrance; exit 147C on I-10
	0.75	1.21	1B	24th Street
	1.76	2.83	1C	32nd Street
	3.27	5.26	2	40th Street / 44th Street
	3.51	5.65	3	SR 143 / Washington Street / McDowell Road	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; exit 5 on SR 143
	4.37– 4.52	7.03– 7.27	4	52nd Street / Van Buren Street
Tempe	5.35	8.61	5	To SR 143 south – Sky Harbor Airport	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; access via unsigned SR 202 Spur
	5.71– 6.37	9.19– 10.25	6	Priest Drive / Center Parkway
	7.73	12.44	7	Scottsdale Road / Rural Road
Salt River	8.22	13.23	West end of bridge
	8.70	14.00	8	McClintock Drive	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	9.22	14.84	East end of bridge
Mesa	9.66– 9.92	15.55– 15.96	9	Loop 101	Exit 51 on Loop 101
	11.07	17.82	10	Dobson Road
	12.07	19.42	11	Alma School Road
	12.73	20.49	12	McKellips Road	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	13.23	21.29	13	SR 87 (Country Club Drive) – Payson
	16.55	26.63	16	Gilbert Road	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	18.10	29.13	17	McDowell Road	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
	19.05	30.66	19	Val Vista Drive
	20.07	32.30	20	Greenfield Road
	21.08	33.92	21	Higley Road – Falcon Field Airport
	22.17	35.68	22	Recker Road
	22.95	36.93	23A	Power Road	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	23.73	38.19	23B	McDowell Road	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
	24.91	40.09	25	McKellips Road
	26.39	42.47	26	Brown Road
	27.86	44.84	27	University Drive to Apache Trail / Main Street	Signed as University Dr. only northbound
	28.92	46.54	28	Broadway Road
	30.42– 30.60	48.96– 49.25	30A-B	US 60 – Phoenix, Globe	Signed as exits 30A (east) and 30B (west); SuperRedTan Interchange; exit 190 on US 60
			Red Mountain Freeway transitions to Santan Freeway
	31.01	49.91	31	Baseline Road	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
	32.05	51.58	32	Guadalupe Road
	33.05	53.19	33	Elliot Road
	33.95– 35.25	54.64– 56.73	34A	SR 24 east	To Ellsworth Road; west end of SR 24
	34.15– 35.75	54.96– 57.53	34B	Hawes Road – Gateway Airport
Mesa–Gilbert line	36.55	58.82	36	Power Road – Gateway Airport	Also serves ASU Polytechnic Campus
Gilbert	38.55	62.04	38	Higley Road
	40.75	65.58	40	Williams Field Road	Serves SanTan Village Mall and Power Center
	41.75	67.19	41	Santan Village Parkway	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	42.41	68.25	42	Val Vista Drive	Serves Mercy Gilbert Hospital
Gilbert–Chandler line	44.48	71.58	44	Gilbert Road	Serves Gilbert Crossroads Power Center
Chandler	45.48	73.19	45	Cooper Road – Chandler Airport
	46.48	74.80	46	McQueen Road
	47.55	76.52	47	SR 87 (Arizona Avenue)	Serves Downtown Chandler
	48.56	78.15	48	Alma School Road
	49.56	79.76	49	Dobson Road	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
	50.58	81.40	50A	Loop 101 north	Clockwise end of Loop 101; exits 61B-C on Loop 101
	50.65	81.51	50B	Price Road	Serves Chandler Fashion Center
	50.74	81.66	50C	Loop 101 north	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; HOV interchange; exit 61D on Loop 101
	51.65	83.12	51	McClintock Drive / Chandler Village Drive	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	53.65	86.34	53	Kyrene Road
	55.16– 55.30	88.77– 89.00	55A-B	I-10 (Maricopa Freeway) – Tucson, Phoenix	Signed as exits 55A (west) and 55B (east); exits 161A–B on I-10
			55C	I-10 west	HOV interchange; westbound exit and eastbound entrance; exit 161C on I-10
Phoenix	55.30– 57.17	89.00– 92.01		Pecos Road west	Temporary CW terminus; future transition to South Mountain Freeway
			56	40th Street	Planned diamond interchange[39]
	59.17	95.22	58	24th Street	Planned diamond interchange[39]
	60.97	98.12	60	Desert Foothills Parkway	Planned diamond interchange[39]
	62.97	101.34	62	17th Avenue	Planned diamond interchange[39]
			64	51st Avenue	Planned diamond interchange[39]
			66	Elliot Road	Planned diamond interchange[39]
			67	Dobbins Road	Planned modified diamond interchange[39]
			68	Baseline Road	Planned diamond interchange[39]
			69	Southern Avenue	Planned diamond interchange[39]
			70	SR 30 west	Planned interchange with the eastern terminus of SR 30[39]
			71	Broadway Road	Planned diamond interchange[39]
			72	Lower Buckeye Road	Planned diamond interchange with 59th Avenue service roads[39]
			73	Buckeye Road	Planned diamond interchange with 59th Avenue service roads[39]
			74	Van Buren Street	Planned diamond interchange with 59th Avenue service roads[39]
				I-10 east	Planned HOV ramps; northbound exit and southbound entrance[39]
			75	I-10 (Papago Freeway)	Planned directional-T interchange to replace exit 138 on I-10[39]
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       HOV only       Incomplete access       Route transition       Unopened

Spur route

Arizona Spur 202 is an unsigned state highway located in Phoenix. It begins at the Red Mountain Freeway (Loop 202) at exit 5. It continues west, intersecting the Hohokam Expressway (SR 143) and ends at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. This is an unsigned route, marked by westbound exit signs from Loop 202 as Sky Harbor Boulevard. The spur route was commissioned in 1993.^[1]

Major intersections

The entire route is in Maricopa County. All exits are unnumbered.

Location	mi[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Phoenix	1.22	1.96	Sky Harbor Boulevard – Sky Harbor Airport	Continuation beyond western terminus
	1.20– 1.10	1.93– 1.77	44th Street south	Former SR 153 (Sky Harbor Expressway); eastbound exit and westbound left entrance
			44th Street north	Former SR 153 (Sky Harbor Expressway); eastbound left exit and westbound entrance
Phoenix–Tempe line	1.03	1.66	SR 143 south to I-10	No exit ramps to SR 143 north; no eastbound entrance from SR 143 south; exits 3A–B on SR 143
Tempe	0.30	0.48	Priest Drive / Center Parkway – Downtown Tempe	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	0.00	0.00	Loop 202 east	Eastern terminus; exit 5 on Loop 202
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access

See also

• U.S. Roads portal
• Arizona portal
• Metropolitan Phoenix Freeways
• Loop 101
• Loop 303

References

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• Arizona Department of Transportation site on the proposed South Mountain Freeway