Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey was surrounded by legislators on Wednesday to sign a bill they passed a bill to approve the expansion of Interstate 10 between Chandler and Casa Grande.
Senate Bill 1239 will appropriate $400 million from the state General Fund to the Arizona Department of Transportation to widen this notoriously dangerous stretch of highway.
Known as the Wild Horse Pass Corridor, the segment between Chandler and Casa Grande is the last remaining stretch of highway between Arizona’s two largest cities that has only two lanes. The investment allocated by Senate Bill 1239, which passed with strong bipartisan support, will accelerate a proposed project to widen this congested 26-mile segment of I-10 from two lanes to three.
The Wild Horse Pass Corridor links freight traffic from the international ports of southern Arizona and the West Coast to the rest of the nation.
In addition to widening to three lanes, the proposed project will extend the High Occupancy Vehicle lanes in the northern portion, replace the Gila River Bridge, add and improve interchanges for enhanced mobility, and more.
The project is expected to start in 2023, with bridges that carry traffic over the Gila River. Target completion is 2026.
The improvements are anticipated to reduce the number of crashes in the corridor by half, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation, compared to predicted levels without expanding the highway.
With this $400 million state appropriation, ADOT is currently working to draw down federal matching monies to complete this project.
This legislation will take effect 90 days after the legislature adjourns