California State Route 177
Rice Road | ||||
Route information | ||||
Maintained by Caltrans | ||||
Length | 27.024 mi[1] (43.491 km) | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end | I-10 near Desert Center | |||
North end | SR 62 near Rice | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United States | |||
State | California | |||
Counties | Riverside | |||
Highway system | ||||
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State Route 177 (SR 177) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California in Riverside County. The route runs along Rice Road, linking Interstate 10 (I-10) midway between the Coachella Valley and Blythe on the California–Arizona border, to SR 62 near Rice. SR 177 travels along the eastern portion of the Joshua Tree National Park; like the eastern 100 miles (160 km) of SR 62, it passes through some of the most desolate areas of the Mojave Desert.
Route description
SR 177 begins as Rice Road at I-10 near Desert Center and briefly travels north, intersecting with CR R2. At this intersection, SR 177 turns northeast and travels across the Mojave Desert, through the Chuckwalla Valley. It passes near the Desert Center Airport and comes near Palen Lake, a dry lake. The highway passes along the southeastern boundary of Joshua Tree National Park before turning due north and crossing the desert for several miles. SR 177 briefly turns northeast again before intersecting with SR 62 and defaulting onto SR 62 eastbound.[2][3]
The route is two lanes wide for its entire length.[4] In 2022, SR 177 had an annual average daily traffic (AADT) of 2,500 vehicles at the northern terminus with SR 62, and 3,400 vehicles at the southern terminus with I-10, the latter of which was the highest AADT for the highway.[5]
History
The Metropolitan Water District built a road from Desert Center that ran north before turning east to Earp along with portions of the Colorado River Aqueduct from February 20 to August 4 in 1933. This was part of a road system that was built in order to support the construction of the aqueduct by connecting the camps that construction workers resided in during the project. This road cost $389,600 (about $7 million in 2023 dollars)[6] to construct; the roads in the system were paved.[7] SR 177 was added to the state highway system in 1972 by the California State Legislature.[8] As of 1998, Caltrans had no plans to expand the highway, considering it to be "maintain only" through 2015.[4]
Major intersections
The entire route is in Riverside County.
Location | mi [9][10] | km | Destinations | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 | 0.00 | I-10 – Blythe, Indio | Interchange; south end of SR 177; I-10 exit 192 | |
| 0.26 | 0.42 | Kaiser Road (CR R2) – Kaiser Mine | ||
| 27.02 | 43.48 | SR 62 (Twentynine Palms Highway, Rice Road) – Rice, Twentynine Palms | North end of SR 177 | |
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi |
References
- ^ California Department of Transportation. "State Truck Route List". Sacramento: California Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (XLS file) on June 30, 2015. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
- ^ Riverside County Road Atlas (Map). Thomas Brothers. 2008.
- ^ Google (October 31, 2024). "California State Route 177" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
- ^ a b "SR 177 Transportation Concept Report" (PDF). California Department of Transportation. 1998. pp. 3, 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 29, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
- ^ California Department of Transportation (2022). "All Traffic Volumes on CSHS". Sacramento: California Department of Transportation.
- ^ Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved November 30, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
- ^ History & First Annual Report, Commemorative Edition (PDF). Metropolitan Water District. 1939. pp. 141–145. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-02-25.
- ^ California State Assembly. An act to amend Sections 263.3, 263.8, and 415 of, and to add Section 486 to, the Streets and Highways Code, relating to state highways. 1972 Session of the Legislature. Statutes of California. State of California. Ch. 1216, p. 2351.
- ^ California Department of Transportation (October 2018). "Log of Bridges on State Highways". Sacramento: California Department of Transportation.
- ^ California Department of Transportation (2016). Postmile Services (Map). California Department of Transportation. Retrieved September 12, 2016.