Contractors have been selected by the Arizona Department of Transport (ADOT) to carry out the expansion and modifications on Interstate i17 Highway, north of Phoenix. The contractors have formed a joint venture named Kiewit-Fann and will combine their efforts towards completing this project.
The development team working on the Interstate i17 Highway project is made up of Kiewit Infrastructure West Co based in Phoenix and Fann Contracting Inc. based in Prescott. The project’s primary engineer will be Kiewit Engineering Group in collaboration with several other partners, which include the CONSOR Engineers LLC, DBI Services LLC, Lee Engineering, Terracon Consultants Inc, Wheat Design Group, Y2K Engineering, T.Y. Lin International, and Pinyon Environmental Inc. The construction is expected to begin in 2022.
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ADOT intends to expand and modify up to 23 miles of the Interstate i17 Highway from Anthem Way north to Sunset Point. The plan covers the expansion of 15 miles of roadway and the reconstruction of bridges. The development plan for the bridges entails the replacement of two bridges, along with one bridge deck, and the expansion of 10 bridges.
The redevelopment of Interstate i17 Highway is intended to yield a new design of the Arizona highway setup that features eight flex lanes. Each of these flex lanes will be a two-lane roadway, physically separated from the main highway by concrete and their entry points will be controlled by gates. The flow of traffic on these lanes will be unidirectional, depending on greater needs that arise or urgent situations which might lead to congestion or delays, along the steep stretch of the eight-mile roadway, in between Black Canyon City and Sunset Point. The ADOT would be able to open the flex lane gates and allow traffic pass through at any time, in case of a road accident or any other incidents that can cause long delays.
Governor of Arizona, Doug Ducey, pointed out several benefits of the Interstate i17 Highway expansion. Ducey mentioned that the expansion would help decongest and enhance the flow of traffic, as well as reinforce public safety after its completion.
The ADOT Director John Halikowski, also said in a statement that the I-17 project is a representation of the vision of making Arizona the most reliable transportation system in the nation.
