Nearly 300 concrete girders are now in place as crews build two bridges to carry the new Loop 202 South Mountain freeway's future traffic over the Salt River.
The Arizona Department of Transportation says the 292 girders installed for the two bridges represent nearly a third of the 1,000 girders to be installed on 40 bridges along the new freeway's 22-mile (35-kilometer) corridor.
ADOT says many of the bridge girders are very long and heavy, weighing 84.5 tons (77 metric tons) and extending 170 feet (52 meters) in length.
The girders' installation allows crews to finish pouring concrete decks and adding barrier walls.
The freeway will link southwest Phoenix and southeast Phoenix and provide an alternative to Interstate 10 through downtown Phoenix.
