An inside look at Apache Trail restoration project after devastating 2019 storm

TORTILLA FLAT, AZ (AZFamily)—For the past five years, State Route 88, also known as the Apache Trail, has been a road with an abrupt end, torn, broken, and impassable in a section just past Tortilla Flat following a devastating storm.

Soon, this historic highway will become whole once again.

Arizona’s Family got an inside look into the progress being made to restore and reopen this historic highway.

ADOT said the 2019 storm caused massive chunks of the canyon to crash down on the road, and some parts were washed away in flood waters.

This summer, crews worked to grind up those boulders into dirt and gravel and use them as part of the new road.

As ADOT nears completion, they warn people that this road won’t suit everyone.

“It’s very important for the public to know this is a roadway only accessible to four-wheel-drive, high-clearance vehicles. ADOT’s message is that you drive this road at your own risk,” said Garin Groff, a spokesperson for ADOT.

It’s taken nearly five years for the Apache Trail to reopen because ADOT struggled to get funding for the project.

ADOT originally did a study about making the road more accessible and resilient to weather, but the cost was estimated at about $33 million.

While they wait for the money, the agency spent about $4 million on this project, allowing them to reopen a portion of the roadway for certain vehicles.

Once ADOT gets closer to opening this road, they plan to put up plenty of signs warning people that they will need high-clearance vehicles and that people will be entering at their own risk.

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