2026-07-06

Getting Around: Buckeye & the West Valley

How Verrado connects to the rest of the Phoenix metro — I-10, Loop 303, commute realities, and what to know about West Valley driving.

Verrado is a car-oriented community on the western edge of the Phoenix metro. Here's how it connects to everything else. Road projects change frequently — check the Arizona Department of Transportation and the City of Buckeye for current construction.

The basics

  • I-10 at Verrado Way (Exit 120) is the community's front door. Verrado Way runs north from the freeway directly into the community.
  • Loop 303 meets I-10 a few miles east (at Cotton Lane, Exit 124), providing the main north-south connection to Goodyear, Litchfield Park, Surprise, and the northwest Valley.
  • Downtown Phoenix is roughly 25 miles east via I-10; Sky Harbor Airport is a bit further. Off-peak, that's a 30–40 minute drive; peak commutes can be significantly longer.

Commuting realities

I-10 is the workhorse — and the bottleneck. The corridor through the West Valley carries very heavy traffic and has been the subject of ongoing widening efforts (the city maintains an I-10 widening advocacy page). Eastbound mornings and westbound evenings are the heavy directions. Many residents time-shift or work hybrid schedules.

Employment centers reachable without crossing the whole metro include Goodyear and Avondale (healthcare, logistics, aerospace) via I-10 or MC-85, and the Loop 303 corridor (distribution, manufacturing) to the northeast.

Beyond the car

  • Transit is limited on the far West Valley; Valley Metro publishes current routes and park-and-ride locations.
  • Within Verrado, the community itself is genuinely walkable and bikeable — the street grid, paths, and Main Street were designed for it. Golf carts are a common sight; rules for their use on public streets are set by Arizona law and the City of Buckeye.

Airports

Sky Harbor (PHX) is the main airport, about 30 miles east. Phoenix-Mesa Gateway (AZA) is much further, on the far southeast side — generally only worth it for specific low-cost routes.