I-10 Broadway Curve: Drivers facing longer commutes after CD road opened; ADOT asking for patience

PHOENIX - On Aug. 19, the Arizona Department of Transportation opened a new westbound Collector-Distributor, or CD road on the I-10 as part of the Broadway Curve Improvement Project.

The Broadway Curve Improvement Project is supposed to alleviate traffic problems along a stretch of the I-10 in the East Valley, but in this phase of construction, traffic has gotten a lot worse.

"Once that 5 o'clock traffic hits, everything is backed up, and people are going to go bumper to bumper," said one driver.

In a video taken by SkyFOX on Monday, a long line of cars can be seen inching along all morning, as thousands of drivers coming in from Ahwatukee and other parts of the East Valley head to Downtown Phoenix. The cars all merged onto the I-10 West, which is down to three lanes. In addition, drivers on westbound US-60 also faced traffic problems.

The sheer volume of commuters is enough to stall the flow of traffic, but with the new collector-distributor lane now open, those trying to get on it to get to the airport have to cross over multiple lanes to get to it, in the midst of all the people trying to merge. From Baseline Road to State Route 143, drivers says their 30-minute to 40-minute commute nearly tripled to 120 minutes.

"Arizona freeways don’t operate like that," said one person. "Like, why? Why are they changing it? It wasn’t broken, don’t fix it. Just leave it how it was. We were fine before."

On Tuesday, we spoke with an ADOT spokesperson about the traffic issues.

"Both the mainline I-10 and the CD roads get you to Downtown Phoenix, so we recommend that motorists, as they get used to this new configuration, that they slow down to 55 miles per hour - that is what the speed is on both lanes - and pay attention to signage," said Marcy McMacken. "There’s a lot of signage directing motorists to where they need to be, and we’re asking motorists to just be patient, as everyone gets used to this new configuration."

ADOT officials say this is just growing pains, and that this will be alleviated by November, when westbound I-10 will have a total of five lanes.

However, some businesses in the area say the construction project is causing them some trouble.

"I think the Broadway Curve will be good when it's done, but in the meantime, it has been crushing businesses here," said Chuck Beck, who owns a gas station in the area.

Beck said his gas station was a popular rest and refuel stop for drivers, but the place is emptier now because drivers refuse to get off the highway, or avoid the area altogether. Beck, however, maintains the project will be good for the area.

"I think it will be good when it's done. I think it will be good for the city. I think it will be good for this area. But in the meantime, it's been really, really tough," Beck said.

Meanwhile, the Broadway Curve Improvement Project is expected to be complete by early 2025.