Drivers should think of new CD road alongside I-10 Broadway Curve as extended exit ramp

PHOENIX – Drivers confused by the new Interstate 10 Broadway Curve collector-distributor (CD) road should approach it like an extended exit ramp, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

“We want to encourage motorists to slow down and to pay attention so that they can navigate through the Broadway Curve area efficiently to get to where they need to get to. And since it’s a new concept for a lot of Arizona drivers, it’s a good practice to slow down to get familiar with how these CD roads work,” ADOT spokesman Luis Carlos Lopez told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Tuesday.

The westbound CD road opened Monday morning as part of the ongoing I-10 Broadway Curve Improvement Project. The eastbound CD road will open later this year.

“I think the best way I can explain it to people is to think of it as an extended off-ramp,” Lopez said.

The new road alongside I-10, with no stop signs or traffic signals, runs from Baseline Road in Tempe to 40th Street in Phoenix. It was designed to keep traffic flowing through an area where I-10 intersects with US 60 and State Route 143 in relatively small space.

“Before the project, there was a lot of weaving of traffic and so to sort of address that, we introduced collector-distributor road as part of the project,” Lopez said.

Drivers who want to exit I-10 to eastbound US 60, Broadway Road, northbound SR 143 or 40th Street must take get on the CD road near Baseline Road. The freeway signage doesn’t say “collector-distributor road,” but it directs traffic to the appropriate exits.

“Now, let’s say you don’t want to use any of those exits. You can keep going on the CD roads and it’ll merge back with the I-10 mainline,” Lopez said.

The speed limit on the CD road and the I-10 mainline through the Broadway Curve is 55 mph because it is still a construction zone.

More information about how to navigate the CD roads, including videos in English and Spanish, are available on the project website.

The $775 million I-10 Broadway Curve Improvement Project is an ongoing operation to remake 11 miles of freeway. The goal is to reduce travel times during peak hours, improve airport access, support transit options and prepare the region for future growth.

When the project is completed, I-10 will span more than 20 lanes at its widest point.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Heidi Hommel contributed to this report.

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