Phoenix to Salt Lake City freight
Lifetime Logistics Services LLC books Phoenix to Salt Lake City freight on dry vans and flatbeds, carrying goods from the Phoenix metro north to the distribution hub of the Intermountain West. The route runs about 662 miles up Interstate 17 to Flagstaff, across the Colorado Plateau on US 89 through Page and Kanab, over a mountain road on State Route 20 and up Interstate 15, roughly twelve and a half hours at the wheel, which a single driver spreads over two days, and one dispatcher tracks it end to end. Send the pickup, delivery and date through the quote form for a price you can book.
From our dispatch records
- Distance
- About 662 miles
- Typical transit
- Two days
- How often we run it
- Booked as needed
- Trailer types
- Dry van, flatbed
- Who hauls it
- Highway vetted carriers for the plateau run
The route
- Road miles
- Driving time
- Transit, one driver
- Main highways
- Interstate 17, US 89, State Route 20, Interstate 15
| Trailer | Typical transit | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Dry van or power only | Two days | Dock to dock; a drop trailer saves the waiting time at either end. |
| Flatbed | Two days | Allow time to tarp and secure; oversize pieces travel in daylight only, which can add a day. |
| Box truck or cargo van | Two days | For a short shipment that should not wait for a full trailer. |
Freight that leaves the Phoenix metro for Utah
Phoenix is a manufacturing city as well as a market. Semiconductor plants in Chandler and north Phoenix, aerospace and defense manufacturers, electronics assemblers, food and beverage plants and makers of building products all ship out of the metro, and the warehouses that line Interstate 10 through the West Valley redistribute goods across the Southwest. Arizona also mines more copper than any other state, and copper products and other metals leave by truck and rail. Much of the outbound freight heads west to California, but some of it goes north, and for anything bound for Utah and the states around it, Salt Lake City is the natural place to send it.
Salt Lake City is the distribution center of the Intermountain West. Interstate 15 and Interstate 80 cross there, the Union Pacific runs through, and the valley’s western half is lined with warehouses that serve Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming and beyond. Freight from Phoenix arrives to restock those buildings, to supply manufacturers and builders along the Wasatch Front, and to feed the construction that has followed Utah’s rapid population growth. Retail goods, electrical and plumbing supplies, building products, metals and machinery all ride this road north.
Black Canyon, the Mogollon Rim, Glen Canyon and the high plateaus
The route climbs almost from the start. Interstate 17 leaves Phoenix at a little over 1,000 feet, rises past Black Canyon City to the high desert at Sunset Point, drops into the Verde Valley at Camp Verde and then makes the long pull up the Mogollon Rim to Flagstaff, nearly 7,000 feet above sea level among ponderosa pines. North of Flagstaff, US 89 runs past the San Francisco Peaks and down across the Navajo Nation through Cameron and the colored badlands of the Painted Desert to Page, where it crosses the Colorado River on the bridge beside Glen Canyon Dam, with Lake Powell behind it.
Not far past the dam the highway enters Utah and swings west to Kanab, at the foot of the Vermilion Cliffs, then turns north through Mount Carmel Junction and the ranch country of Long Valley, following the young Sevier River toward Panguitch. Above Panguitch the route leaves US 89 for State Route 20, a two lane mountain road with stiff grades over a forested summit, and comes down to Interstate 15 between Cedar City and Beaver. The interstate carries the truck the rest of the way: past Beaver and the Interstate 70 junction at Cove Fort, through Fillmore and Nephi, along Utah Lake through Provo and Orem, and over the Point of the Mountain into the Salt Lake Valley.
High country weather on a desert lane
The climate changes quickly on this run. In July a van can load in the West Valley at well over 110 degrees and be rolling through pine forest at Flagstaff about three hours later. The monsoon season, from about July into September, builds afternoon thunderstorms over the plateau that bring lightning, hail, sudden flooding in desert washes and blowing dust along the highway. Summer is also tourist season: US 89 is the road to Lake Powell, the east side of the Grand Canyon, Zion and Bryce Canyon, and motor homes and rental cars fill it from late spring into early fall.
Winter turns the trip into mountain driving. Snow falls on Interstate 17 around Flagstaff, on US 89 north of town and in the high valleys of southern Utah, and the summit on State Route 20 can be slick or closed after a storm. Deer and elk cross these roads at dawn and dusk, reason enough for many drivers to avoid running the plateau at night. When the high road is bad, a carrier may take the lower route instead: northwest from Phoenix to Wickenburg, US 93 to Kingman and Las Vegas, and Interstate 15 north through St. George. It adds miles and trades the plateau for open desert as far as southern Utah, and the dispatcher tells you before the truck changes course.
Why trucks are willing to head north from Phoenix
More freight comes into Phoenix than goes out, so carriers that deliver there look hard for a load going back out, and a shipper with freight leaving the metro is seldom short of interest. Salt Lake City helps as well: a hub with outbound freight of its own gives a truck that empties there a fair chance at its next load toward California, the Pacific Northwest or east along Interstate 80. A carrier is far more willing to run north when the end of the trip is a good place to reload, and that makes a Phoenix to Salt Lake load an easier one to place with a good carrier.
We handle the lane from our dispatch desk in Covina. Loads go to partner carriers screened through Highway before each dispatch, a check of operating authority, insurance, identity and safety record, and in winter we look for carriers with mountain experience and chains on board. Our own tractors work the corridor between Southern California and Phoenix; a Salt Lake City load goes to the partner best placed for it. The dispatcher who books the truck follows it up the plateau and into Utah, answers your calls along the way and sends the signed delivery receipt.
Vans for most loads, open decks for metal and machinery
A 53 foot dry van carries most of what leaves Phoenix for Utah: palletized retail goods, electronics and components, electrical and plumbing supplies, packaged food and beverages, and boxed building products. A van keeps the freight sealed against dust and monsoon rain, and load bars or straps keep tall pallets from shifting on the grades. Summer heat is the thing to plan for, because a closed trailer on a Phoenix dock in July gets very hot inside; we do not run refrigerated trailers, so heat sensitive freight should be raised when you ask for a price.
Flatbeds take the rest: copper and other metals, structural steel, pipe, machinery and building materials too long or heavy for a van. Tarps matter on this lane, since a load can meet monsoon rain in Arizona and snow in Utah on the same trip. A load wider than 8 feet 6 inches or over the legal height needs permits from Arizona and Utah, and an oversize permit may route the truck by whichever roads the two states allow rather than over the plateau, which can change both the miles and the schedule, so give us the dimensions up front.
Two days, and clocks that disagree in summer
At truck speeds the drive comes to about twelve and a half hours, more than the 11 hours one driver may drive after ten hours off duty, so this is a two day trip. A driver who loads in Phoenix in the morning usually stops for the night in central Utah, within an hour or two of Salt Lake City, and delivers early on the second day. A half hour break after eight hours of driving and the 14 hour on duty window shape the first day too, so a long wait at the Phoenix dock can push the delivery later.
The clocks along the way need watching. Arizona keeps Mountain Standard Time all year, while the Navajo Nation, which the route crosses north of Flagstaff, moves its clocks for daylight saving, so a phone may jump an hour on the way to Page and back again. Utah runs on Mountain Time and changes for daylight saving like most of the country. From November into March, Phoenix and Salt Lake City show the same time; from March into November, Salt Lake City is an hour ahead. We write every appointment in Utah time on the rate confirmation so the driver and the receiver are reading the same clock.
What our dispatcher needs for a Salt Lake City load
The quote form asks for the essentials: the pickup address in the Phoenix metro and its loading hours, the delivery address in the Salt Lake Valley or along the Wasatch Front with receiving hours in Utah time, the ready date, and the freight, with weight, pallet or piece count and, for a flatbed, the size of the largest piece. Mention a liftgate, an appointment window or a construction site delivery. If this lane has been priced today, its dated range shows above the form, and the price you can book comes from the dispatcher once your request arrives.
For each end, see truckload shipping in Phoenix, freight shipping in Arizona, our Salt Lake City freight page and Utah freight shipping. Loads that start in southern Nevada come up the same Interstate 15 on the Las Vegas to Salt Lake City lane, and freight that keeps going north past Utah is covered on our Phoenix to Spokane lane.
Questions shippers ask
- What is the mileage from Phoenix to Salt Lake City by truck?
- About 662 miles by Interstate 17 to Flagstaff, US 89 through Page and Kanab, State Route 20 over the mountains and Interstate 15 north to Salt Lake City.
- How long does a Phoenix to Salt Lake City load take?
- Two days with one driver. The drive is about twelve and a half hours at truck speeds, over the 11 hours a driver may drive in a shift, so a morning pickup usually delivers early on the second day.
- Can the truck go through Las Vegas instead?
- Yes. In bad winter weather or for an oversize load, a carrier may take US 93 through Kingman to Las Vegas and Interstate 15 north. It is longer, and the dispatcher confirms the new arrival time with you before the truck commits to it.
- Will the time change on the way to Utah?
- Only from March into November, when Utah is on daylight saving time and Arizona is not; then Salt Lake City runs an hour ahead of Phoenix. In winter the two cities share the same clock.
- How much does it cost to ship a truckload from Phoenix to Salt Lake City?
- The price turns on the trailer, the weight, any permits, the details at each end and the date. On days the lane has been priced, a dated range appears above the quote form, and the dispatcher answers your request with a firm number.
Ready to price a load?
Send the quote form or call us. A person on our team replies with a price.