PHOENIX (AP) - State officials say a new system to warn of hazardous driving conditions during dust storms on a 10-mile stretch of Interstate 10 between Phoenix and Tucson is operational in time for next Monday’s official start of the monsoon season.
According to the state Department of Transportation, the system is designed to quickly tell drivers to slow down for safety when windblown dust reduces visibility.
The department still advises drivers caught in dust storms to take the next exit if possible or alternatively to pull off the roadway, turn off vehicle lights and take feet off brakes.
The system deployed between Eloy and Picacho Peak includes multiple types of technology, including weather radar, visibility sensors, closed-circuit cameras, overhead message boards and variable speed limit signs.
The system recently completed a 30-day test period, the department said.
The roughly $6.5 million system was funded in part by a federal grant for several projects involving I-10.
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