Disruptive West Valley freeway widening project starts this weekend, to last over 2 years

PHOENIX – Work on a disruptive Loop 101 widening project in the West Valley gets underway this weekend, kicking off more than two years of construction – and headaches for drivers — on the Agua Fria Freeway.

The main objective of the $140 million project is to add a lane in each direction over the 6 miles between Interstate 17 in Phoenix and 75th Avenue in Glendale.

Traffic will be impacted by the work for about 2.5 years, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT).

“We know that it’s not easy on residents, it’s not easy on the drivers, but in the long term, these improvements will be very important as we add to the traffic capacity along Loop 101,” Doug Nintzel, an ADOT spokesman, told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Tuesday.

A project to widen a stretch of Loop 101 (Agua Fria Freeway) will start Friday night.

Eastbound Loop 101 will be closed between 75th and 51st avenues from 10 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday.

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— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) September 24, 2024

Several bridges along the stretch will also be expanded as part of the Loop 101 widening project. In addition, crews will upgrade the freeway lighting and resurface pavement.

“One of the key things about this project is along southbound 75th Avenue we’re going to add a third left turn lane at the bridge there for traffic that will be entering eastbound Loop 101,” Nintzel said.

How will Loop 101 widening project affect traffic this weekend?

Construction on the Loop 101 widening project, which is funded through the countywide Prop 400 half-cent transportation sales tax, starts this weekend with the establishment of work zones and removal of worn asphalt pavement.

To get that work done, the eastbound Loop 101 will be closed from 75th Avenue to 51st Avenue from 10 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday.

In addition, the ramps from Bell Road and Union Hills Drive to northbound Loop 101 will be off limits.

Traffic forced to exit Loop 101 at 75th Avenue can detour along the eastbound Beardsley frontage road and reenter the freeway at 51st Avenue. Another option is to take eastbound Union Hills Drive to northbound 51st Avenue to Loop 101.

The same stretch of Loop 101 in the opposite direction will be closed the weekend of Oct. 4-7, ADOT said.

Improvement projects underway across Valley freeway system

The Loop 101 widening project joins several other major ongoing improvement initiatives on the metro Phoenix freeway system. That includes widening projects on the Loop 101 Pima Freeway in Scottsdale and the Loop 202 Santan Freeway in the East Valley as well as the massive I-10 Broadway Curve Improvement Project in Phoenix and Tempe.

“We’ve been working with the Maricopa Association of Governments on the various projects that have been scheduled through the Regional Transportation Plan, and it is the turn for Loop 101 in between I-17 and 75th Avenue to be widened,” Nintzel said.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s John Roller contributed to this report.

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