Sen. Mark Kelly is asking Congress for a grant to widen Interstate 10 between Phoenix and Tucson.
He said the state and the Maricopa Association of Governments have already committed more than $850 million combined to fund the project.
“Every single day there is an accident that backs up this stretch of highway for hours,” Kelly said. “And it’s because there are portions of this highway that are just two lanes in each direction.”
In a Senate Environment and Public Works committee hearing this week, Kelly asked why the same I-10 project hadn’t been approved for a mega grant last year.
Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt said some carbon-reduction program grants didn't allow it, but there’s nothing in the law expressly blocking the expansion.
