Interstate 10 expansion making slow, methodical progress
Feb 11, 2020, 4:50 AM | Updated: 11:41 am
(I-10 Bridge Project Photo)
(I-10 Bridge Project Photo)
PHOENIX — Following Monday morning’s deadly crash on Interstate 10 and Riggs Road south of Phoenix, KTAR News 92.3 FM checked into the progress on the possible expansion of the freeway.
To add insult to injury, the eastbound lanes of the I-10 were closed for three hours on the drive to work.
“That was horrific to wake up and hear about that [Monday],” said state Rep. T.J. Shope (R-Casa Grande). “Unfortunately, it is an all-too-common occurrence for the drivers that have to travel that — dare I say — very dangerous highway, especially in peak traffic time periods.”
Perhaps if the freeway had three lanes instead of two each way, Shope says the outcome could have been different.
“If you have an accident that is blocking two lanes, at least traffic can be forced into that single lane that is still operable,” he said.
So, stakeholders like the Arizona Department of Transportation, the Gila River Indian Community and the Maricopa Association of Governments are studying the expansion of the I-10 between Queen Creek and Casa Grande, section by section.
“It is a 26-mile corridor,” said MAG project manager Quinn Castro. “The intent is to break it into pieces and determine priorities for funding in order to set up construction projects to move forward.”
Castro says her group is leading studies for environmental impact, which could take a year, plus “the interchanges and the freeway-grade separated bridge structures that you’ll see out there.”
Studies also include plant and animal life, plus culturally significant sites, especially on those 26 miles of uniquely held land.
“ADOT owns and operates Interstate 10, but the Gila River Indian Community owns the land that it runs across,” Castro said.
Shope, who is also the Arizona House’s speaker pro tempore, says tribal leaders are on board, so far.
“Frontage roads have been a big topic of conversation, as well as more on- and off-ramps within the community,” he said.
Right now, there’s only one ramp on the tribal land.
Last week, the State House’s Appropriations Committee unanimously approved expanding the Gila River Bridge in the middle of that land. The full House could follow suit later this week.
“We have had a lot of positive feedback, not just from members here at the capitol, but from the general public,” Shope said.
Shope’s bill, HB 2243, would allow state spending on expansion to capture matching federal dollars.
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey already allotted $8 million for the environmental impact study on the Gila River Bridge, plus $26 million to complete it.
In sum, the 26 miles of widened freeway could cost $130 million. Full construction could take years.
