PHOENIX – Beginning immediately, drivers traveling through the I-17 Improvement Project corridor between Anthem Way and Sunset Point will see additional Department of Public Safety troopers looking for motorists who speed and drive recklessly. 

The collaborative effort between the Arizona Department of Transportation and DPS is designed to increase safety and reduce the number of crashes in the work zone, according to an ADOT release.

“The enforcement patrols will focus on hazardous driver behaviors that could create safety issues in the work zone for both travelers and construction crews. ADOT and DPS want to remind drivers about the importance of obeying speed limits, monitoring following distances and avoiding distractions while driving through these work zones,” the release stated.

The speed limit throughout the 23-mile I-17 Improvement Project corridor has been 65 mph since the project began in September 2022. DPS troopers will patrol both northbound and southbound I-17, with a particular focus in the Bumble Bee area where work continues on the eight miles of flex lanes, officials said.

DPS and ADOT also will be conducting commercial vehicle enforcement in the area in accordance with the Arizona Commercial Vehicle Safety Partnership – a collaboration between both agencies.

The added patrols and enforcement will also be in force for the two 12-hour overnight full closures of southbound I-17 in February as the project team takes down the old Bumble Bee bridge. As part of that operation, Bumble Bee Road will be closed in both directions for approximately six weeks. 

“Bumble Bee Road is frequently used as an emergency pull-off and turn-around area when there is an incident on the I-17 mainline that causes a closure or major backups,” officials said in the release.

We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.