Drivers are urged to plan for extra travel time
this weekend while Interstate 17 is closed at Carefree Highway (State Route 74)
for bridge demolition work.
The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT)
says crews will tear down the old Carefree Highway bridge over I-17 to make room
for a new, wider bridge already under construction. The bridge project is one
part of a multi-year I-17 improvement effort by ADOT and the Federal Highway
Administration.
I-17 will be closed at Carefree Highway from 10
p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday (March 17). To ensure the safety of the traveling
public during the bridge demolition, I-17 traffic will be detoured along the
exit and entrance ramps at the Carefree Highway interchange.
Traffic signals will be adjusted to allow freeway
traffic to travel along the interchange ramps as quickly as possible. Arizona
Department of Public Safety officers will be available to assist with traffic
control. Drivers are encouraged to consider alternate routes when possible.
The $19.6 million I-17/Carefree Highway
reconstruction project will provide a modern interchange with capacity to handle
increased traffic in the area. Carefree Highway traffic was recently moved to
the first half of the new bridge over I-17. Once the adjacent old bridge is
removed this weekend, crews will build the remainder of the new bridge. The
entire project is scheduled for completion this fall.
Drivers can visit ADOT’s Interstate 17 Web page
at www.azdot.gov/ValleyFreeways for
the times and locations of planned restrictions and closures on I-17 and to sign
up for ADOT’s I-17 weekly e-mail traffic alerts and podcasts.
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