$18.8 million construction project begins this month on Ellsworth Road

Construction will begin this month to widen a segment of Ellsworth Road that's a critical link between Queen Creek and Pinal County. The $18.8 million project will transform the two-lane Ellsworth Road into a six-lane road with a raised median, from Cloud Road to about a quarter-mile south of Empire Boulevard. Maricopa County Supervisor Fulton Brock said that while the economic slump also slowed traffic growth in the area, a massive influx of new residents will eventually rely on Ellsworth to get to their jobs. "We know that Pinal County will be a great area of growth and most of the employment will be in Maricopa County," Brock said. The former General Motors Proving Grounds, the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport and the proposed Gaylord mega resort will make Ellsworth even busier as new employers open their doors, he said. Ellsworth is projected to have 42,000 cars a day on it in 2026. A 2006 traffic count found it had 18,500 vehicles a day on the section that is being widened.

Click here to view this article from its source.