Connecting remote communities to high-speed internet required innovative technology and hard hours of work for crews from Kiewit, which was chosen as construction manager at-risk to install 67 miles of high-capacity fiber optic infrastructure. Installed in trenches along Interstate 17, the fiber will serve as a backbone to connect nearby rural areas to the internet and to connect intelligent transportation system (ITS) field devices for the Arizona Dept. of Transportation (ADOT).

The work involved installing a single 2.5-in. multiduct conduit containing a 288-strand fiber and other empty ducts that could be used for future expansion of backhaul and middle-mile fiber. The ITS technology allows ADOT to monitor traffic flows via connectivity to cameras, closed-circuit TVs, digital message signs and more. 

But I-17 from Flagstaff to Phoenix is no walk in the park. Rough terrain and heavy traffic mark the route, which has narrow lanes and a mountainous landscape resulting in a roughly 1,300-ft change in elevation. Collaborating closely with Kimley-Horn and ADOT, Kiewit avoided costly rock trenching and other various conflicts by utilizing a micro-trenching technique in the interstate’s asphalt shoulder, mitigating risks and reducing the cost of the project while accelerating the schedule. 

Crews logged nearly 45,000 work hours with no lost-time accidents and no recordable incidents, working both day and night on the interstate throughout the 19-month construction period.