New ramp meters designed to help rush hour traffic merge onto busy Valley freeways will be activated on Monday (June 14), according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.
New ramp meters will operate along Interstate 17 on-ramps north of Loop 101 in north Phoenix, while existing ramp meters along US 60 (Superstition Freeway) in Tempe will be reactivated now that new lanes are open following a freeway widening project.
The new southbound I-17 ramp meters will run from 6 to 9 a.m. weekday mornings at Happy Valley Road, Pinnacle Peak Road and Rose Garden Lane. An existing southbound ramp meter at Yorkshire Drive will be reactivated again Monday morning. It had been off during the major I-17 expansion project in the north Valley.
Northbound I-17 ramp meters will run from 3 to 7 p.m. weekday afternoons at Utopia Drive as well as Deer Valley, Pinnacle Peak and Happy Valley roads.
Westbound US 60 ramp meters will operate from 5:30 to 9 a.m. weekday mornings at McClintock Drive, Rural Road and Mill Avenue. Two eastbound meters, at Mill Avenue and Rural Road, will operate from 3 to 7 p.m. weekday afternoons.
The signalized ramp meters, in use throughout the Phoenix area, create space between vehicles entering freeways. By improving merging conditions for drivers, the meters enhance traffic flow and improve safety by helping to limit accidents involving merging traffic, ADOT says.
ADOT technicians will monitor the new Loop 101 ramp meters once they are activated and make adjustments as needed. A ramp meter’s stop and go signals adjust to the flow of freeway traffic tracked by pavement sensors and allow a measured number of vehicles to enter the freeway each minute during rush hours.
Drivers with comments about the new meters can call ADOT at 602.712.7355.
