State

$100 million highway improves Sedona access

Sunday, July 6, 2008 12:33 AM CDT

PHOENIX (AP) - A $100 million project to widen Arizona Highway 179 to improve access to Sedona is getting high marks for balancing needs of drivers while maintaining the quaint charm of the popular tourist destination.

The project to improve the 9-mile stretch from the Village of Oak Creek to Sedona was met with concern when it was proposed in late 2003. Residents and business owners worried that replacing the two-lane road into town with a four-lane highway would destroy the area's homey nature.

But with an estimated 3 million people a year visiting Sedona and more than 20 years passing since the last improvements, the plan pushed forward - with major accommodations to the locals.

Set to be completed next year, the Arizona Department of Transportation effort ended up keeping the roadway as a single lane in each direction while providing a divided median to prevent drivers from turning at inopportune places. It also added turn lanes and 11 roundabouts to keep vehicles from stacking up at traffic lights.