TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Another driver died on I-10 Tuesday. It continues a trend of deaths on I-10 spiking with the year barely begun.
If you drive in southern Arizona, you probably know what it’s like on I-10. It can be nerve wracking, and lately it’s been especially deadly.
It was just after 1 a.m. when a car slammed into the back of a semi trailer near where I-10 connects to I-19. The car caught fire and the driver died.
It was the latest in a string of deaths on the main highway through our area.
Two people died Jan. 7 in an incident near milepost 270.
Another person died Jan. 31 near Valencia.
On Feb. 1, a pedestrian was hit and killed near Marana.
Marshall Ure has 37 years behind the wheel as a professional trucker. He says when it comes to safety I-10 seems to be about like any other road but he thinks driver behavior is getting worse, especially since the pandemic.
“I don't know if it was everyone off the road for a year or two or what's happening there, but the skills have gone down. It's just a different world for a little bit.”
DPS says troopers are seeing more cases of drivers who are impaired, distracted, or driving too fast.
Michael Snyder says on a motorcycle he always has to ride as if drivers don’t see him but he says he feels more and more concerned when he rides on I-10.
“Recently there's so much more traffic, slowdowns and stops on the freeway all the time now. It got better when they opened it up three lanes downtown and stuff, but it's gotten so much worse. Thousands and thousands of trucks and stuff out there on the freeway.”
But Lilly Brokaw says she still feels comfortable and safe on I-10 around Tucson and would much rather drive there than Los Angeles or Phoenix.
Several of these accidents involve trucks. Drivers often complain about trucks but truckers often say drivers do dangerous things like come too close when they pull in front of the truck—without appreciating that a heavy truck can not stop or slow down as easily as a car can.
