# Arizona State Route 101

Arizona State Route 101 (SR 101) or Loop 101 is a semi-beltway looping around the Phoenix Metropolitan Area in central Arizona, United States. It connects several suburbs of Phoenix, including Tolleson, Glendale, Peoria, Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe, and Chandler. Construction began in 1986 and was completed in 2002.
Loop 101 has three officially designated sections along its route:
* Agua Fria Freeway in the west valley from I-10 to I-17
* Pima Freeway in the east valley from I-17 to Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway)
* Price Freeway in the east valley from Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway) to Loop 202 (Santan Freeway)

## Route description

Agua Fria Freeway
Loop 101 begins as the Agua Fria Freeway at a three-level interchange with I-10 in Tolleson west of Phoenix. From that point, the route heads north entering Phoenix then Glendale, passing State Farm Stadium and Desert Diamond Arena. Continuing northward through Peoria, it encounters the Grand Avenue portion of US 60 and passes the Peoria Sports Complex before entering northwestern Glendale and curving east just past the Arrowhead Towne Center mall. The route then heads east along the Beardsley Road alignment. The freeway enters northern Phoenix, and at milepost 23, Loop 101 intersects I-17 15 miles (24 km) north of Downtown Phoenix.
Pima Freeway
Continuing east as the Pima Freeway, Loop 101 travels just south of Deer Valley Airport before intersecting the northern terminus of SR 51 at milepost 29. East of this junction, Loop 101 curves south through Scottsdale on the Pima Road alignment. The freeway then curves east and passes through the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, just south of Via Linda providing access to Downtown Scottsdale, Scottsdale Pavilions, Scottsdale Community College, two casinos, and Scottsdale Fashion Square. Continuing south, Loop 101 encounters an interchange with the Red Mountain Freeway portion of Loop 202 in Tempe at milepost 51. This interchange is partially built over the Salt River.
Price Freeway
Loop 101 then becomes the Price Freeway and continues south, passing Arizona State University to the east. The route then intersects the Superstition Freeway portion of US 60 at milepost 55 before entering Chandler.
Loop 101 provides access to Chandler Fashion Center just prior to concluding at milepost 61 at an interchange with the Santan Freeway portion of Loop 202 (signs for AZ-101 Loop S).

## History
### 1985–2007: Original Construction

Loop 101 was a part of the 1985 Maricopa County Regional Transportation Plan that was funded by a sales tax approved by Maricopa County voters that year. The freeway was originally assigned two different route numbers along its path: The Agua Fria Freeway portion was initially designated as SR 417, and the Pima/Price Freeway portion was initially designated as SR 117. The Loop 101 designation was first assigned on December 18, 1987, at which time the South Mountain Freeway and the portion of the San Tan Freeway between I-10 and Price Road were also designated to be part of Loop 101. On July 19, 1991, the proposed South Mountain Freeway was renumbered as part of Loop 202. The San Tan Freeway portion of Loop 101 has never officially been renumbered, though this freeway section has been signed as Loop 202 since its opening.
In 1990, after several years of negotiation with the Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community, the state of Arizona paid the tribe $247 million for right of way for the nine-mile eastern leg of Loop 101 from Via Linda to the north bank of the Salt River. The resulting alignment kept all four corners of each interchange on tribal land, allowing the community to control and benefit from development. The tribe formed a development arm, Salt River DevCo, to manage these and other community developable properties.
Loop 101 was built in stages from 1986 to 2002. The first segment of Loop 101 opened in November 1988, consisting of the two-mile stretch from Peoria Avenue to Northern Avenue in Peoria. Throughout the next 14 years, the other 59 miles of the route would be built including the interchanges with I-10, I-17, both Loop 202 Freeways, and the US 60. The final segment that was built was the two-mile stretch from Scottsdale Road to Pima Road in Scottsdale that opened in April 2002, marking the full completion of the entire 61-mile route. Loop 101 was built with three general-purpose lanes in each direction along with one auxiliary lane with the exception of the three-mile stretch from Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway) to US 60 where there were four general-purpose lanes in each direction.
In January 2006, Scottsdale installed speed enforcement cameras along its 7.8 mile stretch of Loop 101 to lower speeds and reduce collisions. There were six cameras placed in total, three in each direction. The system was calibrated to ticket anyone traveling 76 mph (122 km/h) or greater, as 65 mph (105 km/h) was the predetermined speed limit. The trial phase lasted from January to October 2006 before resuming full time in February 2007. There had been much criticism of the program since its inception, and it ended in 2010.

### 2007–present: Recent Improvements

Between 2007 and 2011, HOV lanes were constructed along the entire route in different phases. It included construction of direct HOV ramps between Loop 101 east and SR 51 south in Northern Phoenix and Loop 101 north and Loop 202 east (Santan Freeway) in Chandler.
The Maryland Avenue HOV interchange in Glendale began construction in October 2013 and was completed in March 2014.
In August 2014, construction began to add a fourth general-purpose lane in each direction for the 11-mile segment from Shea Boulevard to Loop 202 in Scottsdale. Construction was completed in October 2016.
The 64th Street interchange in northeast Phoenix opened in May 2015 after being built in 2008.
Bethany Home Road was renamed Cardinals Way to honor the Arizona Cardinals in February 2019.
In February 2019, construction began to add a fourth general-purpose lane in each direction for the 13-mile segment from I-17 to Pima Road in Scottsdale and northeast Phoenix. Construction was completed in January 2022.
In May 2019, construction began to add a fourth general-purpose lane in each direction for the 6.4-mile segment from Baseline Road to Loop 202 (Santan Freeway) in the East Valley. Construction was completed in August 2020.
Construction began in January 2024 to add a fourth general-purpose lane in each direction for the 4.5-mile segment from Shea Boulevard to Princess Drive/Pima Road. Construction is expected to be completed in early 2026.
Construction began in September 2024 to add a fourth general-purpose lane in each direction for the six-mile segment from 75th Avenue to I-17 in the northwest valley. Construction is expected to be completed in early 2027.

## Future

Direct HOV lane connections are planned to be constructed at the I-10 interchange between Loop 101 and I-10 east. Construction is planned to begin in 2025 and be completed in 2027.
The Northern Avenue interchange in Peoria is planned to be upgraded to a diverging diamond interchange (DDI). It will be the first DDI on Loop 101, and construction is expected to begin in 2025 and be completed in 2027.

## Exit list

The entire route is in Maricopa County.
| Location | mi | km | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
| Tolleson | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1A-B | I-10 (Papago Freeway) – Phoenix, Los Angeles | Counterclockwise terminus; signed as exits 1A (west) and 1B (east); exit 133B on I-10 |
| Tolleson | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1C | I-10 east | Planned HOV interchange with construction set to begin in 2025 |
| Phoenix | 0.72 | 1.16 | 2 | McDowell Road | Southbound exit and northbound entrance |
| Phoenix | 1.74 | 2.80 | 3 | Thomas Road | |
| Phoenix | 2.75 | 4.43 | 4 | Indian School Road | |
| Phoenix | 3.79 | 6.10 | 5 | Camelback Road | |
| Glendale | 4.78 | 7.69 | 6 | Cardinals Way | Formerly Bethany Home Road |
| Glendale | 5.29 | 8.51 | 7A | Maryland Avenue | HOV interchange |
| Glendale | 5.78 | 9.30 | 7B | Glendale Avenue | |
| Glendale–Peoria line | 6.88 | 11.07 | 8 | Northern Avenue | Future Northern Parkway |
| Peoria | 8.09 | 13.02 | 9 | Olive Avenue | |
| Peoria | 9.10 | 14.65 | 10 | Peoria Avenue | |
| Peoria | 10.01 | 16.11 | 11 | US 60 (Grand Avenue) | Northbound exit and southbound entrance; former US 89/SR 93 |
| Peoria | 10.54 | 16.96 | 11 | 91st Avenue to US 60 (Grand Avenue) | Southbound exit and northbound entrance; referred to internally as exit 11A |
| Peoria | 11.47 | 18.46 | 12 | Thunderbird Road | |
| Peoria | 12.30 | 19.79 | Bridge over Skunk Creek | Bridge over Skunk Creek | Bridge over Skunk Creek |
| Peoria | 13.53 | 21.77 | 14 | Bell Road | |
| Glendale | 14.59 | 23.48 | 15 | Union Hills Drive | No southbound exit; southbound access is via exit 16 |
| Glendale | | | Cardinal direction change: Western leg (north–south) / Northern leg (west–east) | Cardinal direction change: Western leg (north–south) / Northern leg (west–east) | Cardinal direction change: Western leg (north–south) / Northern leg (west–east) |
| Glendale | 15.49 | 24.93 | 16 | Beardsley Road west / Union Hills Drive | No eastbound exit |
| Glendale | 16.02 | 25.78 | 17 | 75th Avenue | |
| Glendale | 17.02 | 27.39 | 18 | 67th Avenue | |
| Glendale | 17.96 | 28.90 | 19 | 59th Avenue | |
| Glendale–Phoenix line | 19.86 | 31.96 | 20 | 51st Avenue | |
| Phoenix | 20.97 | 33.75 | 22 | 35th Avenue | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance |
| Phoenix | 22.67– 25.07 | 36.48– 40.35 | 23 | 27th Avenue | Signed as exit 23A westbound |
| Phoenix | 22.67– 25.07 | 36.48– 40.35 | 23 | I-17 (Black Canyon Freeway) – Flagstaff, Phoenix | Signed as exits 23B (north) and 23C (south) westbound; exit 214C on I-17; westbound exit to NB I-17 includes direct exit ramp onto Deer Valley Road |
| Agua Fria Freeway transitions to Pima Freeway |||
| Phoenix | 22.98 | 36.98 | 24 | 19th Avenue | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance |
| Phoenix | 23.96 | 38.56 | 25 | 7th Avenue | |
| Phoenix | 24.96 | 40.17 | 26 | 7th Street | |
| Phoenix | 26.99 | 43.44 | 28 | Cave Creek Road | |
| Phoenix | 28.29– 29.49 | 45.53– 47.46 | 29A | SR 51 south | Signed as exit 29 eastbound; northern terminus of SR 51; exit 15A on SR 51 |
| Phoenix | 28.29– 29.49 | 45.53– 47.46 | 29B | SR 51 south | HOV access only; westbound exit and eastbound entrance |
| Phoenix | 30.09 | 48.43 | 31 | Tatum Boulevard | |
| Phoenix | 31.18 | 50.18 | 32 | 56th Street | |
| Phoenix | 32.36 | 52.08 | 33 | 64th Street | |
| Phoenix–Scottsdale line | 33.30 | 53.59 | 34 | Scottsdale Road | |
| Scottsdale | 34.33 | 55.25 | 35 | Hayden Road | |
| Scottsdale | 35.36 | 56.91 | 36 | Princess Drive / Pima Road | |
| Scottsdale | | | Cardinal direction change: Northern leg (west–east) / Eastern leg (north–south) | Cardinal direction change: Northern leg (west–east) / Eastern leg (north–south) | Cardinal direction change: Northern leg (west–east) / Eastern leg (north–south) |
| Scottsdale | 36.57 | 58.85 | 38 | Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard / Bell Road | No southbound signage for Bell Road |
| Scottsdale | 37.36 | 60.13 | 39 | Raintree Drive / Thunderbird Road | No northbound signage for Thunderbird Road |
| Scottsdale | 38.86 | 62.54 | 40 | Cactus Road | |
| Scottsdale | 39.84 | 64.12 | 41 | Shea Boulevard | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 41.13 | 66.19 | 42 | 90th Street / Pima Road | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 42.16 | 67.85 | 43 | Via de Ventura | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 43.22 | 69.56 | 44 | Talking Stick Way / Indian Bend Road | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 44.28 | 71.26 | 45 | McDonald Drive | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 45.28 | 72.87 | 46 | Chaparral Road | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 46.28 | 74.48 | 47 | Indian School Road | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 47.30 | 76.12 | 48 | Thomas Road | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 48.31 | 77.75 | 49 | McDowell Road | |
| Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community | 49.32 | 79.37 | 50 | McKellips Road | |
| Mesa | 50.03– 50.64 | 80.52– 81.50 | Bridge over the Salt River | Bridge over the Salt River | Bridge over the Salt River |
| Mesa | 50.03– 50.64 | 80.52– 81.50 | 51 | Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway) | Serves Sky Harbor Airport; signed as exits 51A (west/airport) and 51B (east) northbound; exit 9 on Loop 202 |
| Pima Freeway transitions to Price Freeway |||
| Tempe | 51.34 | 82.62 | 52 | Rio Salado Parkway / University Drive | |
| Tempe | 52.34 | 84.23 | 53 | Broadway Road | |
| Tempe | 53.34 | 85.84 | 54 | Southern Avenue / Baseline Road | Southbound exit and northbound entrance |
| Tempe | 53.54– 55.14 | 86.16– 88.74 | 55A-B | US 60 (Superstition Freeway) – Globe, Phoenix | Northbound signed as exits 55A (west) and 55B (east), southbound signed as exits 55A (east) and 55B (west); exits 176A-B on US 60 |
| Tempe | 53.54– 55.14 | 86.16– 88.74 | 55C | Baseline Road / Southern Avenue | Northbound exit and southbound entrance |
| Tempe | 55.36 | 89.09 | 56 | Guadalupe Road | |
| Tempe | 56.37 | 90.72 | 57 | Elliot Road | |
| Chandler | 57.36 | 92.31 | 58 | Warner Road | |
| Chandler | 58.37 | 93.94 | 59 | Ray Road | |
| Chandler | 59.37 | 95.55 | 60 | Chandler Boulevard | Southbound exit and northbound entrance |
| Chandler | 59.67– 60.99 | 96.03– 98.15 | 61A | Price Road | Southbound exit and northbound entrance |
| Chandler | 59.67– 60.99 | 96.03– 98.15 | 61D | Loop 202 east | HOV access only; exit 50C on Loop 202 |
| Chandler | 59.67– 60.99 | 96.03– 98.15 | 61B-C | Loop 202 (Santan Freeway) | Clockwise terminus; signed as exits 61B (west) and 61C (east); exit 50A on Loop 202 |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi HOV only Incomplete access Route transition ||||||
* ↑ As indicated by reassurance shields on the mainline, in addition to guide signs on Union Hills Drive and 75th Avenue
* ↑ As indicated by overhead signs on Princess Drive/Pima Road