Arizona State Route 86 facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
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SR 86 highlighted in red
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| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by ADOT | ||||
| Length | 118.10 mi (190.06 km) | |||
| Existed | 1930–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end |  SR 85 in Why |
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 I-19 in Tucson |
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| East end | 16th Avenue in Tucson | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| State routes in Arizona Unconstructed • Former
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State Route 86 (or SR 86) is an important state highway in southern Arizona. It's like a long road that connects different places. This highway starts in a small town called Why and goes all the way east to Tucson.
SR 86 is super important because it's the main road that goes through the Tohono O'odham Nation. This is a large area where the Tohono O'odham people live.
What is State Route 86 Like?
SR 86 starts in the west at a meeting point with another highway, SR 85, in the town of Why. From there, the road first heads southeast. But soon, it turns more towards the east as it enters the Tohono O'odham Nation.
As you travel east, SR 86 passes through several communities. These include places like Schuchuli, Gunsight, and Sells. Sells is a bigger community within the Tohono O'odham Nation.
The highway keeps curving and changing direction a bit, sometimes going southeast, sometimes northeast, but mostly heading east. It leaves the Tohono O'odham Nation just before it reaches the city of Tucson.
Once in Tucson, SR 86 continues heading east. It passes by a big highway called I-19. The journey on SR 86 ends at 16th Avenue in Tucson.
The History of SR 86
SR 86 has been around for a long time! It was first created in 1930. Back then, it only went between two towns called Willcox and Bowie.
In 1931, the highway got longer. It was stretched west to Benson and east all the way to the border of New Mexico. This made it a direct shortcut around a longer route that went through Douglas.
Later, in 1943, SR 86 was made even longer. It was extended through Tucson and the Tohono O'odham Nation all the way to Ajo.
In 1955, another highway, SR 85, was extended south from Ajo. For a while, SR 85 and SR 86 shared the same road between Ajo and Why. This is called a "concurrency."
Over the years, parts of SR 86 were replaced by bigger highways like Interstate 10. So, in 1970, the eastern end of SR 86 was shortened to just Tucson.
Then, in 1991, the part of SR 86 that shared the road with SR 85 between Ajo and Why was removed. This meant SR 86's western end was shortened to just Why. Finally, in 2003, its eastern end in Tucson was shortened to 16th Avenue.
Did you know that the town of Why was named because the two highways, SR 85 and SR 86, used to meet in a "Y" shape there? Even though the intersection is now shaped like a "T," the name "Why" stuck!
See also
In Spanish: Ruta Estatal de Arizona 86 para niños
