CRUNCH  TIME Interstate 17 north of Carefree Highway could be widened sooner–or later by Kathleen Stinson NORTH VALLEY – Mike Frazier drives Interstate 17 to and from his downtown Phoenix job. And he often commutes on weekends, in heavily congested traffic. “I am amazed how many times on the weekends the freeway jams up – and it’s just as bad southbound,” Frazier said. Traffic backups on the North Valley segment of I‑17 are regularly caused by accidents, but Frazier said more times than not it is the sheer volume of motor vehicles that slows traffic. Although construction of additional lanes from Loop 101 to Carefree Highway will begin late in 2007,  I‑17 north of Carefree Highway is not scheduled for widening until 2021‑2025, said Doug Nintzel, spokesman for the Arizona Department of Transportation.

But help could be on the way from a $307 million state fund called the STAN (State‑wide Transportation Acceleration  Needs) account set aside for accelerating highway  construction across Arizona, and the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) is dividing upits share – $184 million. The MAG council is expected to announce in the fall how that money will be distributed among planned projects.

The state took in about $1 billion in surplus revenues last year and, as a result, the legislature set aside the $307 million fund to speed up the pace at which road infrastructure projects are built. Based on population, Maricopa County gets 60 percent of the STAN money.

Frazier believes the addition of lanes south of Carefree Highway on I‑17 will help alleviate traffic congestion to the north.

“I think it will be a huge relief to Anthem,” he said, but added he doesn’t believe the state’s schedule to widen I‑17 north of Carefree Highway beginning 2021 is realistic.

“I think ADOT’s projections will change,” Frazier predicted. “I  don’t think anyone could have anticipated that growth.”

According to MAG projections, the number of vehicles traveling I‑17 between Carefree Highway and the Pioneer Road interchange just south of Anthem is estimated to increase from 37,000 vehicles per day to 59,000 between now and 2026.

In addition, the Anthem area is expected to see a sharp rise in population in the near future –projected by MAG figures to increase by 28 percent from 2010 to 2020.

“As that population continues to grow, it would be very difficult not to revise that date (2021‑2025). I would be shocked if it’s not expanded sooner because of the volume of traffic,” Frazier said.

“The impact of widening (north of Carefree Highway) would be of regional significance,” said state Sen. Dean Martin. “We need to be putting our resources into this project–it will pay dividends far beyond the actual cost of  the project.”

State Rep. Pamela Gorman points out the widening would benefit more motorists than just those living in Anthem, saying the interstate “is a lifeblood to all of the folks just north of the county line.”

According to Maricopa County Supervisor Andy Kunasek, that northern leg of I‑17 definitely needs to be widened. “Everybody I’ve talked to recognizes this need,” he related.

And he doesn’t think the discussion will turn into a competition with planned highway projects in the East Valley and those in the West Valley.

“I’m pretty confident County Supervisor Max Wilson (a MAG councilman) will see it as a worthwhile project,” Kunasek said.

“There’s no question about it (I‑17 north of Carefree Highway needs to be widened),” stated Wilson. “Transportation is critical to every major arterial in and out of the county. We are going to try to divide the money up by population.”

MAG transportation director Eric Anderson said the association puts a lot of time and energy into crafting its long‑range transportation plan which sets the priorities for highway projects. Although under that plan the widening of I‑17 north of Carefree Highway isn’t slated to begin until sometime between 2021 and 2025, he allowed that MAG could change its priorities and move up the timetable for that project.

“Anthem is developing before anybody thought it would,” Anderson said, adding that some people still view Anthem as “the poster child for sprawl.”

Reach the reporter at kathleen@thedesertadvocate.com.