ADOT opens new lanes on Interstate 17 just in time for Memorial Day travel
The Brief
New lanes are open on Interstate 17 between Anthem Way and Black Canyon City.
The additional lanes should relieve traffic congestion in both directions for Memorial Day travelers.
The expansion is part of ADOT's Interstate 17 improvement project.
PHOENIX - The new Interstate 17 lanes north of Phoenix are now open between Anthem Way and Black Canyon City, just in time for drivers heading out this Memorial Day weekend.
ADOT added a third lane in both directions.
What we know
Drivers can expect to see an extra lane for a 15-mile stretch between Anthem Way and Black Canyon City.
Friday is expected to be one of the busiest travel days of the year, but travelers are finding the new lanes extremely helpful.
""Love it. Yeah," saidd one commuter Steve McLaughlin. "I can't wait for them to open the entire freeway because we've been waiting so long. I live in Phoenix, and I also live in Black Canyon City. I have a second home up there and it's just been terrible the last several years, just going back and forth. But, you know, it's all good. Things come with time, I guess."
Another, Matt Kraske said the added lane on I-17 was a long time coming.
"I love that added lane, especially going up north to Flagstaff. It's going to be really helpful. We've gone. I've lived in Flagstaff. I was born and raised there, lived down here now, so I 17. It's been a huge part of my life. It's always been the road home basically for me. So now that they're adding an extra lane, it's going to be a huge, huge help with truckers and keeping the slow people in the right lanes and allowing everybody else to pass in the left lanes," he said.
Cammie Baker also likes what she's seen.
"I like I like the three lanes. That's awesome. I haven't gotten past like Black Canyon City. I haven't gone past that to see what's going on up there. People tell me, Don't go. You're not going to like it. I'm like, 'Okay, note taken.'"
The backstory
The additional lanes in both directions are part of ADOT's Interstate 17 improvement project where they plan to build eight miles of flex lanes between Black Canyon City and Sunset Point.
This project has been in the works for years. Construction began in September 2022. Drivers say they are very excited to know that this third lane has finally opened up in both directions.
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