MAG News

Drivers in the North Valley will soon see their commute get easier, thanks to the continued commitment by the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) Regional Council to deliver the projects contained in Proposition 400, the region’s sales tax dedicated to transportation.

The MAG Regional Council voted in December to approve a $225.5 million project that includes additional lanes on the Loop 101 Pima Freeway between I-17 and Pima Road. The project will take about two years to complete. It also will address bottlenecks along the Loop 101 at I-17, Cave Creek Road, State Route 51, and Tatum Boulevard.  

Improvements will include:

• Additional lanes in each direction between I-17 and Pima Road.
• Quiet pavement (rubberized asphalt overlay).
• Drainage improvements.
• Technological upgrades. 
• Adding an underpass at Miller Road.

“A smoother commute means people can travel to work and back home to their families more easily,” noted MAG Chair Gail Barney, mayor of Queen Creek.

The Loop 101 project is in the long-range plan approved by voters in 2004 as part of the extension of the half-cent sales tax for transportation, known as Proposition 400.

“This is just one of several critically planned improvements being constructed under Prop 400. It is reflective of the region’s decades-long pledge to implement the plan,” said Mayor Barney. “This commitment has resulted in one of the best transportation systems in the country.”

While the Regional Transportation Plan is facing funding challenges due to rising construction costs and other factors, Barney said completing the Plan remains the Regional Council’s highest priority.

“Delivering Prop 400 takes strong leadership from the mayors and elected officials who make up the MAG Regional Council—something we have been lucky to have in this region for five decades and counting,” he said.

The Loop 101 project will be executed through a “design-build” delivery process, meaning the same contractor team who designs the improvements will also build them, resulting in a much faster construction timeline. In late December, the State Transportation Board approved the Arizona Department of Transportation’s recommendation to award the contract.

Portions of the Loop 101 corridor carry more than 215,000 vehicles per day, a number expected to increase. The freeway provides an important connection to the Scottsdale Airpark, the second-largest employment center in the region. It also connects drivers to recreation, entertainment and tourist attractions