Commuters cruising through Chandler, brace yourselves for a summer detour. Starting at 11:30 p.m. today, the eastbound Loop 202 (Santan Freeway) on-ramp at Arizona Avenue will be out of commission for about two months, according to a release by the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT). The closure is part of a grand scheme to widen the Loop 202 freeway, aiming to ease the congestion that has become all too familiar for Southeast Valley commuters.
The shutdown is set to facilitate the reconstruction of the ramp in question, a step which ADOT claims is vital for enhancing the flow and function of the thoroughfare. For those with a penchant for alternate routes, Alma School or McQueen roads are your next best bets for eastbound access onto Loop 202. Despite the inconvenience, the restructuring is a piece of the larger $200 million Loop 202 Improvement Project — one that has been mapped out to add lanes and enhance interchanges over an 8-mile stretch between Loop 101 (Price Freeway) and Val Vista Drive in Chandler and Gilbert.
Details of the project including funding layers, make it known that this infrastructure move is not without considerable financial backing. Proposition 400, a half-cent sales tax given the nod by Maricopa County voters back in 2004 is partly footing the bill. Operations for this infrastructural facelift are being orchestrated under the Regional Transportation Plan, which is under the purview of the Maricopa Association of Governments, the city-planning cabal for the vast Phoenix metropolis.
