Arizona officials preparing for heavy highway traffic before Memorial Day
May 24, 2018, 4:47 AM
PHOENIX — As Memorial Day weekend creeps up, one Arizona agency was preparing for the high number of drivers who are expected to be on the roads.
The head of the Arizona Department of Transportation issued a challenge to drivers to achieve zero fatalities during the holiday weekend.
“Crashes and vehicle fatalities are rising in Arizona and across the country,” John Halikowski, director of the Arizona Department of Transportation, said in a press release. “We know how to reverse the trend and it begins with drivers.”
Halikowski advised drivers to be responsible, put down the phone and not drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
“When everyone begins making safe decisions behind the wheel, these preventable car-crash deaths will end.”
According to the department, Arizona has not recorded zero traffic fatalities over Memorial Day weekend since 1971. Forty-four people have been killed in crashes during the holiday weekend since 2013 alone.
However, Halikowski said the number of traffic fatalities over the holiday weekend are decreasing each year: There were 11 crashes in 2015, seven in 2016 and five in 2017.
“We’re moving in the right direction, but too many people are choosing to drive impaired,” Alberto Gutier, director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, said in the press release.
“There are many other ways to get home instead of driving drunk. Plan ahead so you can get home safely. The cost of a cab or rideshare is far less than a DUI.”
The Arizona Department of Transportation will monitor three high-traffic zones over the Memorial Day weekend: Interstate 17 between north Phoenix and Flagstaff, Interstate 10 between Phoenix and Tucson and State Route 87 between Mesa and Payson.
Crews will stage equipment in these areas in an effort to respond faster to crashes and stalled vehicles, thus minimizing travel delays. The speed limit will also be lowered on the I-17 between New River and Sunset Point Rest Area during peak holiday travel periods.
