Major Sporting Events May Bring Heavy Traffic To West Valley

By Jackie Cotton
Published: Monday, November 10, 2014 - 2:24pm
Sarah Beckman/KJZZ
University of Phoenix Stadium

Big wins may mean big traffic for the Valley.

This weekend, Phoenix played host to a NASCAR race and an NFL game. With these two big events, Sunday traffic felt more like weekday rush-hour in the west Valley.

While having two large crowd-drawing events isn't common, the winning streak the Arizona Cardinals are now on may start to draw more fans, which could mean more delays. Tom Herrmann, a spokesman with the Arizona Department of Transportation, doesn't think the Cardinals 8-1 record will cause drivers a headache.

“We have a policy that’s in place that we use every football game, with the exception of this week, with the race at the same time," Herrmann said. "And most weekends because the stadium has the same number of fans every week, we have a plan in place that seems to be working well.”

What ADOT is really preparing for right now, said Herrmann, is the Super Bowl traffic, mainly the out-of-town drivers and keeping everyone informed about roadway conditions.