PHOENIX (AZ Family) — Wrong-way accidents are far too common in the Valley.

The Arizona Department of Transportation has spent $4 million to install technology to detect and deter wrong-way drivers and warn others of the danger ahead, but is it making a difference and improving safety?

The thermal detection system should quickly alert Department of Public Safety troopers.

But a wrong-way driver in a crash early Thursday morning went 6 miles on Interstate 17 in the wrong direction before colliding head-on with another car.

Traffic cameras caught the driver heading southbound in the northbound lanes.

“That was a lot more central where a lot of our units are, so I think there’s at least three units that are shown driving very close to it,” DPS Sgt. Eric Andrews said, referring to video captured by traffic cameras.

Despite the ADOTS wrong-way driver detection system, other drivers actually alerted DPS.

“Our first initial notification was through a 911 caller saying, ‘Hey, there’s a wrong-way driver,'” Andrews said.

The system has been in place for six years, and the agency reports that it has detected hundreds of wrong-way drivers.

However, our analysis of crash data shows that the number of wrong-way collisions on I-17 has remained fairly consistent.

• 2019: 6
• 2020: 5
• 2021: 4
• 2022: 6
• 2023: 3

ADOT officials tell us the system can reduce risk, but it can’t prevent wrong-way driving.

However, DPS officials say their best tactic is DUI enforcement.

“We’re all teaming up with ADOT and the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety for additional funding for DUI saturation, checks and DUI enforcement, but ultimately it comes down to the citizens,” Andrews said.

In Thursday’s crash, it’s not known if the driver was under the influence, so we asked Andrews what else can be done to reduce wrong-way crashes.

“I’m sure there are engineers who are always trying to come up with something new, like the flow system,” Andrews said. “But you should talk to some engineers to see if there’s anything else. Unfortunately, that’s not what our agency really does.”

At the state level, data shows not much change in at-fault crashes either.

Spike strips on ramps have often been erected to stop wrong-way drivers, but these are only designed for low-speed traffic and could cause more accidents.

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