happy valley ddi
News Traffic & Travel 

I-17 Lane Closures Update: Construction of Happy Valley & Pinnacle Peak Interchanges

Robert Roy Britt
For 15 years, In&Out Magazine has been the definitive source of “Everything that’s going on” in and out of the community. We thank you, our readers, as well as the businesses that support the magazine through advertising, for that opportunity. But with little going on, and many businesses suspending or canceling their ads during the Covid-19 crisis, we are suspending publication of the magazine and web sites for the month of May. 

happy valley ddi
Click to see full-size version of this graphic, by In&Out Publications.

As part of the project to construct new interchanges at Happy Valley and Pinnacle Peak roads, these HOV lane closures are in effect through fall 2020:

  • The northbound I-17 HOV lane between Pinnacle Peak and Happy Valley roads.
  • The southbound I-17 HOV lane between Jomax and Pinnacle Peak roads.

Also, westbound Happy Valley Road at I-17 will be narrowed to one lane only from 10 p.m. Thursday, April 25, to 5 a.m. Friday, April 26.

And: Pinnacle Peak road will see overnight lane closures between April 17 and 26, ADOT announced April 16. And sections of the right or left shoulders of the interstate will close throughout the project.

Plus, looming: Full Stops. More than a dozen full-stop closures of Interstate 17 are coming from May to November, as crews erect new interchanges at Happy Valley and Pinnacle Peak roads.

This article will be updated as new lane restrictions and closures are announced.

See Also: Scheduled Loop 101 Closures

2-Year Project

The $50 million I-17 project, detailed last summer and slated for completion in fall 2020, will create a relatively new traffic-pattern concept called a “diverging diamond traffic interchange,” or DDI, at Happy Valley Road. The roundabouts will be removed. DDIs installed in other states have been shown to increase traffic flow and reduce severe accidents. [See Videos Below]

Happy Valley Road will be widened to three through lanes in each direction over I-17, with right- and left-turn lanes. Two new, parallel bridges will be constructed.

The new Pinnacle Peak Road interchange will be a traditional diamond interchange but capacity will be increased.

The project also involves extending a fourth general purpose lanes in each direction of I-17 between Deer Valley and Happy Valley roads.

For more information, along with ADOT responses to safety concerns voiced by North Phoenix residents, see our earlier story detailing the project.

ADVERTISEMENT
 North Phoenix Homes for Sale: Full MLS for 85085, 85086, 85087

Robert Roy Britt
NoPho resident Robert Roy Britt has written for In&Out publications since its inception in 2005. Britt began his journalism career in New Jersey newspapers in the early 1990s. He later became a science writer and was editor-in-chief of the online media sites Space.com and Live Science. He has written four novels. .

Robert Roy Britt

NoPho resident Robert Roy Britt has written for In&Out publications since its inception in 2005. Britt began his journalism career in New Jersey newspapers in the early 1990s. He later became a science writer and was editor-in-chief of the online media sites Space.com and Live Science. He has written four novels. .

npneditor has 531 posts and counting.See all posts by npneditor