Wikipedia talk:WikiProject U.S. Roads/Assessment/A-Class review/Interstate 15 in Arizona
The Progress, October 15, 1969
Costliest Interstate To Be in Arizona
PHOENIX, Ariz. (AP)
Arizona is building a [?],000-a-foot highway across a section of the state where it doesn't serve a single community or connect with a state road. The road is the $32 million section of Interstate 15 through he spectacularly scenic Virgin River Gorge, 31 miles across the northwestern corner of the state. The 3.8-mile gorge section will cost [?] million, believed to be the nation's most expensive interstate construction. The route links Salt Lake City with Las Vegas, Nev. Utah wanted it so badly that it advanced Arizona [?] million from its federal road funds. However, eventually Arizona will foot the bill. Arizona's portion of the road will cost the state between [?] and [?] million, with the federal government paying the other 95 per cent. Arizona would have preferred to locate the road three miles to the north, saving million. But federal authorities picked the site because of its scenic beauty and lower grades for trucks. A "swamp buggy" is the only vehicle that can travel through the gorge. Engineering was done by using the machine which has tires 5 feet high and 42 inches wide, and can travel over any obstacle. The pilot and passenger walked away when a contractor's helicopter crashed into a canyon wall, but the helicopter had sunk from sight in quicksand the next day. A thunderstorm buried in sand a "duck" equipped with a drilling rig. Any Arizonan wanting to ride on the highway when it's completed in 1972 will have to go to Las Vegas or St. George, Utah, to gain access to it.
--NE2 20:19, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
- Search for a known part and it will usually give a bit more. Sometimes you have to guess at words to search for. --NE2 20:27, 18 April 2008 (UTC)