INDEPENDENT NEWSMEDIA

Several Valley freeways will be affected this weekend by improvement projects, and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon, which begins in Tempe, also will require drivers to plan ahead.

The Arizona Department of Transportation announced the following projects from Friday night, Jan. 13, until Monday morning, Jan. 16.

• Southbound Interstate 17 will be closed between Greenway Road and Northern Avenue from 10 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday for a pavement improvement project.

 Both Loop 101 ramps to southbound I-17 will be closed. Southbound I-17 on-ramps at Rose Garden Lane, Union Hills Drive and Bell Road also will be closed. Detour: Consider using eastbound Loop 101 to southbound SR 51 as an alternate freeway route to downtown Phoenix. Southbound I-17 drivers also can consider exiting ahead of the closure and using southbound 19th or 35th avenues to travel beyond the closure. Note: Sections of the southbound I-17 frontage road are scheduled to be closed this weekend in areas between Union Hills Drive and Dunlap Avenue.

• Eastbound US 60 will be closed between Loop 101 and Mesa Drive from 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday for a pavement improvement project.

 All Loop 101 ramps to east- and westbound US 60 will be closed. Detour: Consider using eastbound Loop 202 (Red Mountain or Santan freeways) as alternate routes. Eastbound US 60 drivers can consider exiting ahead of the closure and using eastbound Baseline Road or Southern Avenue to travel beyond the closure.

• Southbound Loop 101 will be closed between Camelback and Indian School roads in the West Valley from 2 a.m. Saturday to 5 a.m. Monday for overhead sign work. 

Southbound Loop 101 on-ramps at Glendale Avenue, Maryland Avenue and Cardinals Way also will be closed. Detour: Consider exiting ahead of the closure and using southbound 91st or 99th avenues.

• Westbound Loop 303 will be closed between I-17 and Lake Pleasant Parkway from 4 a.m. Saturday to 7 p.m. Sunday for new interchange construction.

 I-17 off-ramps at Loop 303 will be restricted with access limited to using Sonoran Desert Drive (east of I-17). I-17 on-ramps at Loop 303 will remain open. Detour: Alternate routes include westbound SR 74 to southbound Lake Pleasant Parkway to enter Loop 303 beyond the closure.

• Eastbound I-10 will be narrowed to one lane between Watson Road and Verrado Way in Buckeye from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday for a widening project. Note: Eastbound I-10 on- and off-ramps at Watson Road are closed until early February for reconstruction.
• The southbound I-17 frontage road between McDowell Road and Van Buren Street (and the southbound I-17 on-ramp at McDowell Road) will be closed from 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday for maintenance. Detour: Alternate routes include southbound 19th or 27th avenues.
• Northbound 48th Street (SR 143) will be closed overnight between Broadway Road and I-10 from 8 p.m. Friday to 4 a.m. Saturday for barrier repair work. Detour: Northbound 48th Street traffic can detour on eastbound Broadway Road to northbound Priest Drive and westbound University Drive.

NOTE: There will be several events this weekend in Tempe connected to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon. For more: Tempe Road Closures.