PHOENIX – Improvement projects will require closures or lane restrictions along sections of Phoenix-area freeways this weekend (Oct. 25-28), according to the Arizona Department of Transportation. Closures along Interstate 10, Interstate 17, Loop 101 and State Route 51 are scheduled. Drivers should allow extra travel time and consider alternate routes while weekend work is taking place on these freeways:

• Eastbound I-10 closed between the SR 51 “Mini-Stack” interchange and US 60 (Superstition Freeway) from 10 p.m. Friday to 4 a.m. Monday (Oct. 28) for work on the Broadway Curve Improvement Project. All eastbound I-10 on-ramps between Third Street (downtown area) and US 60 closed. Southbound I-17 on-ramps at Seventh Avenue and Seventh Street closed (some ramp closures start at 8 p.m. Friday). Detours: From I-10 near downtown Phoenix, consider using eastbound Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway) to southbound Loop 101 (Price Freeway) and westbound US 60 or westbound Loop 202 (Santan Freeway) to reach I-10 beyond the closure. I-10 drivers in the West Valley can consider detouring on southbound/eastbound Loop 202 (South Mountain Freeway). Note: The westbound I-10 ramp to northbound SR 143 will be closed this weekend. For more information visit I10BroadwayCurve.com. Note: Northbound 48th Street/SR 143 closed between Broadway Road and University Drive and southbound 40th Street closed between I-10 and Broadway Road from 8 p.m. Friday to 4 a.m. Monday (Oct. 28).
• Westbound Loop 101 (Agua Fria Freeway) closed between 19th and 51st avenues from 10 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday (Oct. 28) for widening project. Westbound Loop 101 ramps to I-17 will be open (expect heavy traffic and delays). I-17 ramps to westbound Loop 101 closed. Westbound Loop 101 on-ramps at Seventh Street and Seventh Avenue closed. Detours: Consider exiting ahead of the closure and using westbound Union Hills Drive or Bell Road. Freeway traffic exiting at 19th Avenue will use the frontage road.
• Southbound Loop 101 (Pima Freeway) closed between Pima Road/Princess Drive and Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard from 10 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday (Oct. 28) for bridge work. Detour: Traffic will detour along the southbound Loop 101 frontage road.
• Southbound State Route 51 closed between Loop 101 (Pima Freeway) and the I-10/Loop 202 “Mini-Stack” interchange from 9 p.m. Friday to 9 p.m. Saturday (Oct. 26) for pavement sealing. Note: Crews will reopen southbound SR 51 in sections while the work progresses Saturday. Detour: Consider alternate routes including southbound Cave Creek Road to southbound Seventh Street.
• Southbound I-17 closed between Peoria Avenue and Indian School Road from 9 p.m. Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday (Oct. 27) for pavement sealing. Note: Crews will reopen southbound I-17 in sections while the work progresses Sunday. Detour: Consider exiting ahead of the closure and using southbound 19th or 35th avenues.
• Southbound I-17 narrowed to one lane during mostly overnight hours between State Route 74/Carefree Highway and Loop 303 from 9 p.m. Friday to 9 a.m. Saturday (Oct. 26); from 9 p.m. Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday (Oct. 27); and from 9 p.m. Sunday to 5 a.m. Monday (Oct. 28) for pavement improvements. Southbound I-17 on-ramp at Dove Valley Road and off-ramp at Loop 303 closed at times. Detour: Allow extra travel time and avoid using neighborhood streets east of I-17 that are not designed for freeway traffic.
• Northbound I-17 narrowed to one lane overnight in areas between Loop 303 and SR 74/Carefree Highway Road from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights (Oct. 25-28) for pavement improvements. Please allow extra travel time.
• Westbound Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway) narrowed to one lane overnight between Priest Drive and 40th Street from 9 p.m. Sunday to 4 a.m. Monday (Oct. 28) for maintenance. Please slow down and use caution in all work zones.
• Grand Avenue (US 60) narrowed to one lane in both directions in areas between R.H. Johnson Boulevard and Deer Valley Road (near Loop 303) from 8 p.m. Friday to 9 a.m. Saturday (Oct. 26); from 8 p.m. Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday (Oct. 27); and from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights (Oct. 27-30) for construction. Expect turn restrictions at the Loop 303 off-ramp connections to Grand Avenue. Please use caution and be prepared to slow down and merge safely when approaching and traveling through all work zones.

Schedules are subject to change due to inclement weather or other factors. ADOT plans and constructs new freeways, additional lanes and other improvements in the Phoenix area as part of the Regional Transportation Plan for the Maricopa County region. Most projects are funded in part by Proposition 400, a dedicated sales tax approved by Maricopa County voters in 2004.

Real-time highway conditions are available on ADOT’s Arizona Traveler Information site at az511.gov, the az511 app (download for Apple or Android devices) or by calling 511. 

TUCSON – New westbound Interstate 10 lanes opened early Wednesday morning between Orange Grove and Ina roads in the northwest Tucson area as part of a larger project to improve safety and traffic flow.

This progress comes as work is now 60% complete on a project to reconstruct and widen I-10 from three to four lanes between Ina and Ruthrauff roads. Work began in early 2023, requiring traffic on both directions of I-10 to use the frontage roads as a detour while crews reconstructed the highway.

This week’s traffic shift to the reconstructed highway also sets the stage for several other milestones to occur by the end of 2024. In the next few months, all of eastbound I-10 traffic will shift from the frontage road detour onto new lanes, as will the remaining section of westbound I-10 that is under construction between Ruthrauff and Orange Grove roads. And by late 2024, the interchange at Orange Grove Road will reopen.

Work on the $171 million project will continue through 2025.

Other current activity includes work on a Sunset Road extension east of I-10 to River Road, with new bridges over the Union Pacific railroad tracks and the Rillito River. The Sunset Road interchange is expected to open as the project winds down in late 2025.

Other project improvements include:

• Rebuilding the Orange Grove Road bridges to allow for higher clearance
• New Orange Grove and Sunset road interchanges that will feature additional lanes on entrance and exit ramps to promote safety and reduce delays
• Replacing all nine bridges in the project area, including those over Canada del Oro Wash and Rillito River
• Constructing an access path to the Chuck Huckelberry Loop from Sunset Road
• Related work on lighting, landscaping and drainage

The I-10 project is part of the Regional Transportation Authority’s roadway improvement plan, managed by the Pima Association of Governments.

ADOT will maintain access to local businesses throughout the project.

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/i10ina2ruthrauff.

TUCSON – A planned traffic shift to new westbound Interstate 10 lanes at Orange Grove Road has been postponed due to a mechanical issue with lane striping equipment, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

The change onto new I-10 lanes, which had been scheduled to be complete by Tuesday morning, will be rescheduled in the coming days.

Traffic continues to use the westbound frontage road as a detour through the work zone.

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/i10ina2ruthrauff.

TUCSON – New westbound Interstate 10 lanes are scheduled to open by Tuesday morning between Orange Grove and Ina roads in the northwest Tucson area as part of a larger project to improve safety and traffic flow.

This progress comes as work is now 60% complete on a project to reconstruct and widen I-10 from three to four lanes between Ina and Ruthrauff roads. Work began in early 2023, requiring traffic on both directions of I-10 to use the frontage roads as a detour while crews reconstructed the highway.

This week’s traffic shift to the reconstructed highway also sets the stage for several other milestones to occur by the end of 2024. In the next few months, all of eastbound I-10 traffic will shift from the frontage road detour onto new lanes, as will the remaining section of westbound I-10 that is under construction between Ruthrauff and Orange Grove roads. And by late 2024, the interchange at Orange Grove Road will reopen.

Work on the $171 million project will continue through 2025.

Other current activity includes work on a Sunset Road extension east of I-10 to River Road, with new bridges over the Union Pacific railroad tracks and the Rillito River. The Sunset Road interchange is expected to open as the project winds down in late 2025.

Other project improvements include:

• Rebuilding the Orange Grove Road bridges to allow for higher clearance
• New Orange Grove and Sunset road interchanges that will feature additional lanes on entrance and exit ramps to promote safety and reduce delays
• Replacing all nine bridges in the project area, including those over Canada del Oro Wash and Rillito River
• Constructing an access path to the Chuck Huckelberry Loop from Sunset Road
• Related work on lighting, landscaping and drainage

The I-10 project is part of the Regional Transportation Authority’s roadway improvement plan, managed by the Pima Association of Governments.

ADOT will maintain access to local businesses throughout the project.

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/i10ina2ruthrauff.

TUCSON – The Arizona Department of Transportation is preparing to move forward with a project in 2025 that will reconstruct and widen Interstate 10 between Kino Parkway and Country Club Road southeast of downtown Tucson.

On Friday, Aug. 16, the State Transportation Board awarded the design-build project to Sundt-Jacobs. At $600 million, it will be the largest highway construction project in southern Arizona history. 

The project will include:

• Widen I-10 to three lanes in each direction between Kino Parkway and Alvernon Way, and to four lanes in each direction west of Kino Parkway.
• Reconstruct the interchange at Kino Parkway.
• Remove the existing interchange Palo Verde Road.  
• Construct a new interchange Country Club Road that will provide access for traffic that currently uses the interchange at Palo Verde Road to allow for safer traffic movements to and from I-10.
• Construct a new westbound on-ramp at the Alvernon Way interchange.
• Construct an I-10 undercrossing to connect the North and South Kino Sports Complex.

Construction is expected to begin in mid-2025 and continue through 2028.

The project will be the first to result from a study completed in 2020 that recommended how to best improve mobility along a roughly 10-mile stretch of I-10 from I-19 to Kolb Road. The study also identified an alignment for an extension of State Route 210 (Barraza Aviation Parkway) along Alvernon Way that will connect I-10 to downtown Tucson.

ADOT is planning to share more detailed design plans for the corridor and provide an opportunity for the public to speak with members of the design team at a community open house event in early 2025.

For more information, please visit I-10KinotoCountryClub.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation is honoring a late civil engineer tasked with managing the development of the Interstate 10 Deck Park Tunnel and final segments of the Papago Freeway north of downtown Phoenix.

On Tuesday, May 7, ADOT Director Jennifer Toth, former ADOT Director and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters and others dedicated the I-10 tunnel in Dean Lindsey’s name with signs outside each tunnel entrance and a plaque in Margaret T. Hance Park. Lindsey guided development of the interstate’s downtown-area segments, including the tunnel, in the 1970s and ’80s. The Deck Park Tunnel, which was part of the “Final Mile” of I-10 across the country, opened to traffic in August 1990. 

ADOT officials, former colleagues and others joined Lindsey’s family in the park, located above the tunnel through which well over 250,000 vehicles pass daily, to unveil a plaque reading “Dean Lindsey I-10 Memorial Tunnel.” The work included close collaboration with the city of Phoenix and the community on the complex development of the tunnel and the city’s Margaret T. Hance Park. 

“Dean Lindsey had a reputation for bringing people together during the design work that allowed I-10 and Hance Park to become realities in the downtown Phoenix area more than 30 years ago,” Director Toth said. “He was a key architect of the early Valley freeway program, and I’m sure he’d want to share this dedication with those who worked beside him.”

That sentiment was shared by a one-time colleague, retired ADOT Chief Deputy State Engineer Bob Mickelson. 

“You can’t overstate the work that Dean put into the Papago Freeway,” Mickelson said. “There were times he was working seven days a week. He was wonderful with people, which was important at a time when planning that section of I-10 was politically charged. He was the right man to lead the planning and design processes for the tunnel project, the I-17 Stack interchange and the I-10 connections with State Route 51.” 

Lindsey began working for ADOT in 1974. He also spent time working in the consultant engineering sector. His daughter Laura Felten summed up her father’s legacy this way:

“Dad loved his work at ADOT and looked back on it with pride. He had many stories about the accomplishments, the camaraderie with coworkers and the problem solving required to deliver projects. Whenever our family drives through the Deck Park Tunnel, we call it ‘PaPa’s Tunnel.’ We are so honored that it now bears his name.” 

Lindsey retired from ADOT in 2006 and passed away in 2023. He was honored with an Arizona Transportation Legacy Award in 2014 during the 63rd Conference on Roads and Streets held in Tucson. The Arizona State Board on Geographic and Historic Names is the official state body that approved naming the tunnel in Dean Lindsey’s honor.  

PHOENIX – Consider making an early start toward State Farm Stadium if you’re planning to spend Tuesday night together with tens of thousands of other Rolling Stones fans. 

With the concert scheduled for 8 p.m. and doors opening at 6 p.m., heavier traffic is likely all down the line on westbound Interstate 10 in Phoenix and on Loop 101 (Agua Fria Freeway) in Glendale as concertgoers join the usual crowd goin’ home. ADOT encourages all drivers to allow extra time and avoid acting like wild horses. We have sympathy for you. 

The situation needn’t ruin your Ruby Tuesday or leave you shattered, however. Those who gotta get away from the Chandler/southeast Valley area might actually get some satisfaction by using westbound/northbound Loop 202 (South Mountain Freeway) to bypass I-10 through downtown Phoenix. Parking lots open at 4 p.m., so if you make an earlier start you just might wind up hanging fire while waiting on a friend who didn’t heed this advice. You can tell them, “Miss you.” 

You can get the real-time lowdown on highway conditions on ADOT’s Arizona Traveler Information site at az511.gov or by calling 511. ADOT also shines a light via its Twitter/X feed, @ArizonaDOT.

TUCSON – Some of the most visible work to rebuild a section of I-10 in the Tucson area is quickly progressing as work crews have now set more than 80 bridge girders in place and installed large sections of the new concrete driving surface.

Work is now 40 percent complete on the Arizona Department of Transportation’s project to reconstruct and widen I-10 between Ina and Ruthrauff roads, with work starting just less than one year ago.

A key element of the project involves placing 217 girders for nine new bridges, and most of those girders along I-10 will be set by the end of March. Meanwhile, work crews have completed 80 percent of concrete paving work and are now turning to concrete drainage features and barriers.

That concrete barrier work is key to a future milestone that will return drivers back to I-10 itself rather than using the current detour along frontage roads. Once the barrier work is complete by late summer, westbound and eastbound I-10 traffic will shift to the reconstructed freeway lanes.

When traffic returns to I-10, crews will then focus on finishing the Orange Grove Road interchange, which is expected to reopen in late 2024. 

After that, work shifts to the Sunset Road interchange. As part of that interchange work, ADOT will construct a project funded by Pima County that will extend Sunset Road east to River Road with new bridges over the Union Pacific Railroad tracks and the Rillito River.

The overall project will continue through late 2025, when the Sunset Road interchange will reopen.

ADOT will maintain access to local businesses throughout the project.

Other project improvements include:

• Rebuilding the Orange Grove Road bridges to allow for higher clearance
• New Orange Grove and Sunset road interchanges that will feature additional lanes on entrance and exit ramps to promote safety and reduce delays
• Replacing all nine bridges in the project area, including those over Canada del Oro Wash and Rillito River
• Constructing an access path to the Chuck Huckelberry Loop from Sunset Road
• Related work on lighting, landscaping and drainage

The I-10 project is part of the Regional Transportation Authority’s roadway improvement plan, managed by the Pima Association of Governments.

For more information, please visit azdot.gov/i10ina2ruthrauff.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation will hold a virtual public meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 23, to provide information, gather comments and answer questions about designs to improve the Interstate 10 interchange at Jackrabbit Trail in the Buckeye area.

ADOT’s virtual meeting is scheduled as follows:

• 6 to 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 23 
• Participants can register online at azdot.gov/JackrabbitMtg
• You also can use the call in number: 669.444.9171 Participant ID: 264911
• English Webinar ID: 951 5167 6868  Spanish Webinar ID: 948 3052 6118

Planned improvements include:

• Reconstructing the I-10/Jackrabbit Trail interchange and adding traffic signals.
• Widening on- and off-ramps and providing additional turn lanes.
• Widening Jackrabbit Trail to three lanes in each direction between McDowell Road and Van Buren Street.

The project to improve traffic flow and safety at the Jackrabbit Trail interchange is not currently funded for construction. This project is included in the Regional Strategic Transportation Infrastructure Investment Plan.

The virtual meeting will include a presentation by ADOT’s project team and an opportunity for questions and comments from participants. Following the meeting the presentation will be available on the project’s study website at azdot.gov/I10Jackrabbit.

Public comments about the draft recommended improvements at I-10 and Jackrabbit Trail can be submitted through Feb. 7 in the following ways: An online survey at azdot.gov/i10JackrabbitComments; by phone at 623.695.7411; by mail at ADOT Community Relations, 1655 West Jackson St., MD 126F, Phoenix, AZ 85007 and by email at [email protected].

TUCSON – Major improvements are in the works for those who use Interstate 10 in the Tucson area, where new lanes and a rebuilt interchange are on track to open by the end of the coming year.

Motorists can expect a year of many changes as part of the ongoing project to widen I-10 between Ina and Ruthrauff roads. It’s one of several significant projects the Arizona Department of Transportation has planned for southern Arizona in 2024. 

Some highly visible progress on I-10 will begin early in the year as crews place 121 girders for nine new bridges, along with concrete paving for the rebuilt section of freeway.

And while heavy construction will dominate the 4-mile segment of I-10 during the year, it will come with a big payoff. By late 2024, ADOT will shift traffic onto a reconstructed freeway featuring four lanes of traffic in each direction. And the Orange Grove Road interchange will reopen with wider entrance and exit ramps to promote safety and better traffic flow.

The $171 million I-10 project will continue into 2025, when a reconstructed Sunset Road interchange opens. The interchange will feature a connection eastward to River Road thanks to a new bridge, funded by Pima County, that will carry traffic over the Union Pacific railroad tracks and the Rillito River.

Throughout the project, ADOT is maintaining three lanes of traffic through the work zone during daytime hours and maintaining access to businesses. The public can get project updates and traffic alerts at azdot.gov/i10ina2ruthrauff

Beyond Tucson, ADOT is planning projects to:

• Repair the US 191 bridge over I-10 at milepost 131, about 9 miles west of Willcox. The work will include replacing the girders and deck following a crash that severely damaged the bridge in early 2023. Construction will begin in early 2024 and extend through the summer. For more information, please visit azdot.gov/US191BridgeRepair
• Construct dual roundabouts in Florence. The project includes a dual roundabout at State Route 287 and SR 79B in cooperation with the town of Florence and Maricopa Association of Governments. Nearby, ADOT will construct a single lane roundabout at SR 79B and Florence Heights Drive. The project is scheduled to be complete in summer 2024. For more information, please visit azdot.gov/FlorenceRoundabouts

ADOT also has several pavement improvement projects planned in the coming year, including along 10 miles of I-10 near Casa Grande and 20 miles of SR 90 in and near Sierra Vista. For more information, please visit azdot.gov/projects.