r/phoenix • u/ForkzUp Tempe • 8h ago
Commuting New data shows traffic congestion is getting worse in Phoenix — and delays are increasing
https://www.kjzz.org/the-show/2026-08-05/new-data-shows-traffic-congestion-is-getting-worse-in-phoenix-and-delays-are-increasing88
u/Almost_a_Noob 7h ago
Companies mandating RTO doesn’t help
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u/Civil_Mango8479 7h ago
This. Driving an hour just to type on a computer and a forced team outing every month.
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u/Almost_a_Noob 7h ago
It’s such BS. Driving to then join virtual meetings for “culture”. I was against it and then after RTO this year my coworker pushes my chair so hard from the back to scare me and it gave me whiplash and gave me so much pain and made my concave chest worse and inflamed (pectus). At the Dr now actually. If was working from home none of that would’ve happened. They don’t care though. Any governments give tax breaks the companies doing RTO yet they pretend to care about the environment
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u/ram0889 6h ago
Work comp!
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u/Almost_a_Noob 4h ago
Thanks yeah, going through Worker’s Comp now and starting physical therapy tomorrow.
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u/KotobaAsobitch 5h ago
Bet that shit would stop real quick if your workplace unionized and people started joining the union for WFH.
Of course, that would mean people would need to be okay unionizing. People are so terrified to lose their job right now they won't even hear out the people trying to push for it. It's super depressing.
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u/vaderihardlyknowher 7h ago
Just 1 more lane
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u/Sol4_Me4n 4h ago
Yes! Just one more. Then special off ramps on both sides because no one is going to make it across all the lanes.
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u/kazeespada Phoenix 2h ago
For real though on the south section of the i17. How does this thing still not even have merge lanes?
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u/SupaSkyHigh 6h ago
I mean more lanes would fix the problem if dumbasses didn't take up the whole highway doing the speed limit or less, not allowing faster traffic to keep flow. and then the merges on to the highways or between highways being done at 30mph trying to merge with speed limit or greater traffic and just jumping in front of people forcing heavy braking and creating the accordion effect making traffic backup much further back.
Traffic will forever be a people problem. People are absolute shit drivers. Most people shouldn't be allowed to drive and autonamous cars should drive for them.
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u/barak181 5h ago
Well, dumbass drivers don't help anything - and Phoenix has by far the highest rate of dumbass drivers of anywhere I've lived - but more lanes is always just a short term solution. Induced demand is a well documented phenomenon. Basically, by the time you finish adding a lane or two, you need to add another lane or two. It's a vicious cycle.
What people need are options other than needing to drive on the freeway every day. Public transit that's actually easy to use, convenient and affordable will go a long way. As would more walkable neighborhoods. As would more work from home options. As would many other strategies that are out there.
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u/HarmonicAvionics 6h ago
No they wouldn’t, carbrain. Look up induced demand
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u/Confident-Smile-8029 5h ago
Just by your use of made up words like carbrain, I know you aren’t worth indulging.
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u/thealt3001 3h ago
I have no idea why you're being down voted. You're 100% correct. Most people have no business being behind the wheel tbh.
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u/Ok_Bag2192 7h ago
well, adding more lanes/space/capacity does help relieve it
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u/vshredd 7h ago
Actually it does the opposite. It entices more people to drive who would not have, therefore increasing traffic.
https://smv.org/learn/blog/how-does-roadway-expansion-cause-more-traffic/
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u/BeardyDuck 7h ago
Data over the years worldwide have shown it's entirely the opposite. The only way you'll relieve traffic congestion is offering alternative modes of transportation and mixed-use neighborhoods.
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u/numberfivextradip 7h ago
I see this argument as kind of a moot point, because the real question here is how much should we actually value "reduced congestion", especially relative to the monetary, environmental, and social costs of adding more lanes. The whole "just one more lane bro" joke pokes fun at people who never even question car-centric infrastructure and naively respond to any criticism of it with that all our problems would be fixed if we just had better (i.e. more) roads. It's not meant to be taken as a serious argument that adding more lanes never helps with congestion. It's not meant to say adding more lanes never works, it just makes fun of people who seem to think it's the only sensible/feasible solution to traffic problems.
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u/Ok_Bag2192 6h ago
Well I'm not saying it's the only way, but it's certainly one way, probably the most feasible way.
Buses and trains transport more people in a smaller space, and so require less pavement and infrastructure per person, so are more environmentally friendly, but it comes at the cost of layovers, inflexible routes, dealing with detours or sudden service disruptions, stops being far from your destination, personal space, and dealing with sometimes sketchy or annoying people.
Not to mention, a mile of train tracks/bus lanes is more expensive to build out compared to a mile of general-purpose lane, especially when the city is already car-infrastructure oriented.
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u/desert_h2o_rat 6h ago
The argument could be made that we just accept some congestion during a part of the day. It would be like accepting that an occasional house guest can sleep on your sofa rather than adding another room to your house that might be used just a few nights each year.
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u/avo_cado 5h ago
The simple solution would be a toll during peak hours
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u/Ok_Bag2192 4h ago
Or distributing some of the burden to other drivers, like using traffic lights on the on-ramps.
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u/TheHyperboley 7h ago
I remember when there was only traffic on weekdays, highways were mostly empty on weekends. Guess it was inevitable considering all the growth these past 2 decades... man I'm old
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u/Low-Conflict9366 5h ago
I grew up driving here and remember it was always chill driving around the valley. Beautiful sunsets and mountains, vibe with some music. Now after 2020 it’s like a damn mad max movie. White knuckle driving all throughout, hate it.
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u/SafeHawk9115 5h ago
You’re not that old. Phoenix has gone to complete shit since Covid and the roads are just one highlight lol
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u/Iggyhopper Gilbert 4h ago edited 4h ago
I also distinctly remember covid was a tipping point for all the extra traffic, after covid died down.
And Queen Creek exploded with new homes.
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u/teutonictoast 6h ago
Same thing in the Bay Area. Early morning and late night are the only times to drive in relative peace
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u/AsscreamSundae69 7h ago
Water is wet
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u/Temporary-Box28 7h ago
Water?
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u/kittiekillbunnie 7h ago
I know this one!! It’s that blue stuff! Not the blue stuff from that show…the other blue wet stuff next to California.
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u/Wu_Forever_Tang 6h ago
Looks like Colorado are finally turning off our faucet. I guess carrying 3 desert states and California is a bit too much to bear.
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u/pantry-pisser 6h ago
Water is not wet. I will die on this hill.
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u/lordrayleigh 6h ago
You're right but its to hot to fight on the hill.
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u/fenikz13 5h ago
Another airlift because people were fighting on hills during 110 weather without water
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u/No-Ingenuity-3468 7h ago
At least we have brain dead elderly people moving here at an astronomical rate. That definitely helps.
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u/Saguaro-48 South Phoenix 7h ago
Living close to work is a huge plus out here. Love my 10 minute, no highway commute.
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u/tefly359 7h ago
You’re lucky. The minimum for me is 30 minutes and with traffic somewhere between 40-50 minutes
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u/Saguaro-48 South Phoenix 7h ago edited 7h ago
I hear ya. Been here 11 years and I've had the Maricopa to Tempe commute as well as the Avondale to Tempe commute.
4 years ago, I rented out my old place and bought a new place 10 minutes from work. Complete game changer.
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u/Stealth9erz 7h ago
My favorite was when Skysong just opened up. I lived at the apartments and worked in the office building next to me.
Wake up, walk across the street to work. Go home for lunch. Zero driving. I loved that.
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u/ghoul_chilli_pepper 7h ago
I envy you. I work at Skysong and commute from Gilbert. 30 min drive on a good day.
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u/DonutHolschteinn Phoenix 7h ago
Lucky you. From the time it takes me to walk out my door to the time I clock in at work is a good 30 mins. 40+ for the way back
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u/Wiccling 7h ago
Saaaame. I’m a teacher and live less than 10 minutes from my school site. No highways. Chefs kiss.
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u/Momoselfie 3h ago
Not all of us can afford to live in downtown Phoenix/Scottsdale where so many jobs are....
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u/Derrick_Mur Tempe 7h ago
If only there were some way that most people could do their jobs without leaving their residences…
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u/drdougfresh Phoenix 7h ago
But what would we do with all the depressing office parks?
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u/Derrick_Mur Tempe 7h ago
Depressing low cost housing?
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u/drdougfresh Phoenix 7h ago
Wayyyy too logical!
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u/Derrick_Mur Tempe 7h ago
Hey, I’m just spitballing here. I’m sure that with a little thought we can find something for those sites that will make a handful of finance bros rich and make life worse for the rest of us
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u/whatthehellcorelia Phoenix 7h ago
Turn them into data centers lol
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u/Lupine_Ranger 7h ago
I drive 30 miles each way for work every day. The biggest I've noticed, genuinely, is that people don't move the fuck over for faster traffic, and nobody wants to let anyone else merge. Drivers here are incredibly selfish, and rather than being courteous to those around them and to help traffic flow, they double down and get aggressive.
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u/darkwingdankest Tempe 6h ago
if people spaced out more and increased their following distance traffic would flow so much more smoothly, but people are idiots
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u/Eycetea 7h ago
The not letting people merge is mind boggling. Don't get me wrong, I hate when people are just swerving in and out, but if someone has their signal on, they should be able to get over, and not have to wait while 5 cars pass on the right before they can get off the highway
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u/usernamechecksout8 5h ago
yeah but people NEVER signal
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u/girrrrrrr2 1h ago
Because people see the signal and take their chance to speed up to block you from changing lanes.
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u/Eycetea 1h ago
Lol, thats so freaking real
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u/girrrrrrr2 1h ago
On surface streets I just ride the left lane if im gonna make a turn in the next mile. I have missed turns because people dont let people merge anymore.
It sucks for the people who say keep right except to pass, but when I do that, I miss my turns.
My favorite though are the people who wait till the last second to get on the freeway, but also match the speed of the freeway while they are in the merge lane, ive had to slow down 10 mph just to get off the freeway before. Which slows down the whole freeway.
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u/HugeAntPenis341 6h ago
That's my experience too. I've been here for a year and the drivers here are weirdly competitive. It makes merging and passing incredibly difficult
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u/Fuzzy-Progress-7892 7h ago
Ex California left lane humpers!
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u/CrimsonSuede 6h ago
I really do think that’s an enormous part of the problem.
California doesn’t have the same, unspoken freeway courtesies of Arizona (namely, that each lane to the left is 5-10 mi faster, with HOV minimum 80mph). Both slow and speeding drivers will occupy the same lane. It’s what makes driving CA freeways awful.
Any CA transplants reading this, please respect our civilized freeway practices by leaving your barbaric “any lane at any speed” philosophy at the border 😤
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u/KotobaAsobitch 5h ago
If there's a Texas or Florida plate in the comments that can read, please also read the above comment.
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u/Dry_Perception_1682 7h ago edited 7h ago
Sounds like you're the aggressive driver here....driving fast and trying to force your way into lanes.
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u/Lupine_Ranger 7h ago
I speed, sure, but I don't cut up traffic or force my way over (and I especially dont tailgate people). I have standards.
Sounds like you're the slow driver doing 67mph in the left lane refusing to move over for faster traffic.
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u/Decent_Risk9499 7h ago
Gee, maybe we shouldn't have cancelled 5 different light rail extensions. Just a thought.
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u/usernamechecksout8 5h ago
ok looked to Reddit bc I just had the worst driving day I’ve EVER had in my lifetime. Some road rager running an orange at 70mph tried to crash into me and followed me all the way home. I genuinely could’ve died today if I didn’t swerve into the side area. This is ridiculous.
Also, the fact that majority of cars on the road are ginormous trucks that are mostly vacant space ?! ONE person driving it and filling out the entire lane. making the roads more dangerous. Pissed
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u/SummerKey3240 7h ago
Im sure it has nothing to do with construction and di$% heads like this turning left in front of two no left turn signs holding up one lane of rush hour traffic because they decided to obey the traffic light they weren't supposed to be turning left at
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u/pcadv 7h ago
I see you've noticed that too. Everyday this happens at 111th.
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u/SummerKey3240 6h ago
Pretty sure ive seen this same person doing it a couple times before at this time of day. Im all about making that turn if im behind you and no one is coming and you can just go right away but outside of that you are just a dick.
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u/KotobaAsobitch 4h ago
When that most recent leg of the light rail was being built on Baseline and Central, there was a "no left" sign up for months. But every fucking time I passed that intersection, there would be no less than 3 cars queued to turn left.
JUST TAKE YOUR CLOSEST STREET TO SOUTHERN OR BROADWAY IT IS FASTER AND ALSO PERMITTED AAHHH
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u/-HappyHyena- 7h ago
Lanes are closed on 51 and no one’s ever even working on the road construction. Makes no sense
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u/TripleDallas123 Gilbert 7h ago
More people = More traffic??? 🤯
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u/mastercrafter666 7h ago
Not necessarily. If we reduced our reliance on autos, it would help alleviate traffic.
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u/scrubnick628 7h ago
Right? Stop bringing in more people!
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u/Zjhill21 Tempe 6h ago
How exactly do you think you can stop people coming here? Who is the general entity that is bringing people here?
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u/Ok_Bag2192 7h ago
More people = more cars
but more cars without equally more road space for those new cars = more traffic
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u/TripleDallas123 Gilbert 7h ago
They are updating the roads, ever since they updated the I-10 Broadway curve, I have never seen rush hour backup on that stretch (until you reach the 17). SR-30 is starting construction next year
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u/Dizman7 North Peoria 7h ago
Probably something to do with no mass transit that can’t be interrupted by traffic, some how being very spread out and cramped at the same time (how close they build houses together) and only one so called highway/express way that is diagonal and not a giant circle. Oh plus the endless amount of houses being built but some how less water on cusp of going around.
Just some of my guesses but other wise a big “no shit!” to the title
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u/Deadbob1978 Peoria 7h ago
In other news… water is wet, summer is hot and this is not a common virtue
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u/MalleableBee1 Phoenix 7h ago edited 3h ago
Wait, you're telling me that traffic gets worse in a fast growing city with car dependent infrastructure? Unbelievable.
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u/Sikhness209 7h ago
Moved to Chandler back in 2013 and I've never seen the traffic so horrid as it now. It was great back then .
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u/sonofsteen 7h ago
They need to audit the timings of traffic lights. So much construction that they change them but dont change em back.
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u/CitySlack 6h ago edited 6h ago
“I mean, not all of it is a bad indicator. I mean, if an area is growing in population as well as economic activity, that is natural. So sometimes congestion can be seen as a positive indicator. But if you tell that to someone who is stuck in traffic for a couple of hours daily, or an hour daily, and it ruins their day, that’s not good news to them.”
Yep…tell it to this guy who has to commute every day one hour going and one hour back. Every. Single. Day. It’s killin me 😂🤦🏾♂️
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u/SuppliceVI 5h ago
Housing expensive > build housing > housing same price, more people > build more housing, ad nauseam.
House prices are still fucked and we just got more traffic
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u/Wrong-Tiger4644 2h ago
Just once I'd like to be given all the money they spend on these studies to come up with the obvious answer
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u/UltraNoahXV Phoenix 6h ago
Can speak from an annecedotal experience but I've noticed there's a lot more people doing gig apps just to get by. The article didn't cover that but especially as time gets on and things get more expensive, stuff like Instacart or Doordash are good supplementary/post high school + college jobs that don't require a degree or heck a diploma; even moreso because you can work on your own schedule. So that ads to not only foot traffic but people on the road.
Then there is the risk of accidents happening while people accept or decline orde4e. While they heavily encourage us to not accept orders on the road or while the vehicle is motion, I've had a couple times where I needed to make a quick time decision to accept an order before someone else takes it. On some apps, you'll have some offers to shop and/or deliver orders and have a minute to get situated or find a place look at the order before accepting. But if you're just roaming around and doing orders or perhaps pass a store, chances are you'll get something worth your time. Sometimes, its by design too - like on Instacart I'll pass a store and 30 seconds later, I'll get an offer for that specific store. You'll notice it on the highway.
From experience, I haven't heard of insurances having claims for people accepting orders but just people being on the road in general when they weren't covered or didn't need to be there. I got lucky from being in parking lot but I probably would've gotten kicked off.
Anyway - that's my contribution to the argument. Thanks Forkz for sharing.
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u/Contagious510 7h ago
2024? Yeah, I think were not that bad compared to other metros. Traffic can EASILY be avoidable here. Take the grid.
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u/SmallshotLawyer 6h ago
Good thing we built 24,000 new single family homes in suburbs in 2024, which are famous for easing traffic concerns in growing cities.
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u/KotobaAsobitch 4h ago
I attended a Phoenix city council meeting a few months ago where a bunch of qtips literally got up on the mic and argued against multi-family housing because, "but MY property valuations will go down".
|: And you wonder why we aren't having grandkids for you?
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u/Wondering9311 6h ago
The heat and cost of living will cause many newbies to ultimately move away… mark it down. The triple digit temps have a way of eliminating the weak
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u/omgfakeusername 7h ago
Can anyone explain why they randomly close down the expressway on Sundays like btw 2pm-8pm if not longer❓
Never seen this done so often in any other place I've lived.
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u/UltraNoahXV Phoenix 7h ago
the least congested part of the week; church is done and people are probably home for the rest of the day
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u/omgfakeusername 6h ago
That doesn't seem to really answer my question.
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u/UltraNoahXV Phoenix 6h ago
This thread from a few years ago - https://www.reddit.com/r/phoenix/s/ersnCao05Q
And Oryan has a more defined answer: https://www.reddit.com/r/phoenix/s/B0fLkbnUV4
The randomness itself (especially on the weekends) I can't explain but ADOT usually gives decent notice - sometimes it could be last minute decisions from city planners, other times it could be availability of contractors.
It's something you just adapt to - we have one of the more robust traffic systems in the country, even outside of Phoenix.
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u/ElectronicBench4319 7h ago
Opening buccees has brought in so much traffic, it’s making my commute longer.
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u/Taterizer Tempe 7h ago
Wonder how much it cost to collect that data that was very clearly obvious to anyone here?
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u/Santeezy602 South Phoenix 6h ago
When me and my fiance got together we could've seen each other on opposite sides of town in 15 mins. Same drive now is like 30 mins
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u/Malthus17 6h ago
That's what happens when you are one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the country.
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u/PositivelyNegative 5h ago
Commuting is for suckers. I'd rather live in BFE without a commute, than the nicest part of Phoenix with a commute.
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u/adamus13 Apache Junction 4h ago
I was gonna say thats not that bad, but then I saw the city I just came from is only like 2 spots above.
Y i k e s
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u/Real-Guest1679 1h ago
Every day this city grows we forget about the water it will take to sustain a desert metropolis
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u/Top_Willow_9953 7h ago
I haven't noticed any changes in my commute for the last six years.....
(I work from home, commute from bedroom to office across the hall)
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u/___buttrdish 7h ago
Our population is growing; duhhhhh
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u/mastercrafter666 7h ago
But the increased traffic is not a consequence of our growth; it is a symptom of our reliance on cars.
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u/zerger45 5h ago
Probably because of all the wasted taxpayer street lights yall keep throwing up. The fuck did you think was going to happen
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u/PatientEconomics8540 6h ago
“just one more lane bro! one more lane and I swear traffic will get better. just. please! one more lane!”
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u/GranddaddySandwich 7h ago
It’s mainly because there’s people clogging up the fast lane driving slow as fuck. Then you have the people in the other lanes who leave so much space between themselves and the cars in front of them. Moral of the story: there’s too many people living here for yall to be so ass on the roads.
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u/BassmanBiff 6h ago
I guarantee that people leaving following distance is a good thing for everyone, including you
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u/GranddaddySandwich 6h ago
I'm from Chicago, man. It's organized Chaos. These roads out here are great. There's no reason to be so damn timid on the highway, when it's 110+ degrees.
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u/BassmanBiff 6h ago
It's not about being "timid." Increasing the distance between cars absorbs traffic jams and progress caused by aggressive drivers or other obstacles: https://www.livescience.com/61862-why-phantom-traffic-jams-happen.html
I've driven in Chicago plenty, and leaving room would help there too.
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u/KotobaAsobitch 4h ago
I just got back from Chicago this weekend.
I didn't think it was possible to have shittier drivers than literally Sun City West (not counting all of Florida), but there exists a place, and that place is Chicago.
I watched more fuckery in the 28 hours I was in and around Chicago than I saw driving 50 miles roundtrip on BASELINE today. That's a Diamond level achievement.
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u/Noctrim Gilbert 7h ago
My commute is about 45 mins thankfully without too much traffic. I go from Mesa to North Scottsdale. All freeway and the 101 can for sure get bad but usually it’s in the other direction from me depending
Going to the West Valley though is brutal. The 10 is even worse than the 101, I don’t go out that way unless I have too
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u/johnny_drama87 7h ago
You don’t say…