Photo courtesy of Arizona Department of Transportation

Concrete barrier work is key to a future milestone that will return drivers back to I-10 itself rather than using the current detour along frontage roads.

Crews began reconstructing a portion of Interstate 10 in Tucson, Ariz., a little over a year ago, but work is quickly progressing and the Arizona Department of Transportation recently announced that the project is now close to halfway complete.

According to the latest updates, work is now more than 40 percent complete on the Arizona Department of Transportation's project to reconstruct and widen I-10 between Ina and Ruthrauff roads, with work starting just less than one year ago.

Photo courtesy of Arizona Department of Transportation

A key element of the project involves placing 217 girders for nine new bridges, and most of those girders along I-10 will be set by the end of March. Meanwhile, work crews have completed 80 percent of concrete paving work and are now turning to concrete drainage features and barriers.

That concrete barrier work is key to a future milestone that will return drivers back to I-10 itself rather than using the current detour along frontage roads. Once the barrier work is complete by late summer, westbound and eastbound I-10 traffic will shift to the reconstructed freeway lanes.

"The project required widening I-10 to four lanes in each direction and reconstruction of the traffic interchange," Sundt said in a statement. "Other improvements included widening Ruthrauff Road near I-10, reconstructing the I-10 frontage roads to connect to the new interchange and other miscellaneous work including constructing concrete barriers, storm drain, guardrail, granite mulch, landform graphics, signing and pavement marking."

When traffic returns to I-10, crews will then focus on finishing the Orange Grove Road interchange, which is expected to reopen in late 2024.

"This is an important project for the Tucson area," said Rod Lane, ADOT's engineer of the Southcentral District. "The new interchange will allow traffic to move more quickly through the area and we're improving safety because drivers will no longer have to cross the railroad tracks."

After that, work shifts to the Sunset Road interchange. As part of that interchange work, ADOT will construct a project funded by Pima County that will extend Sunset Road east to River Road with new bridges over the Union Pacific Railroad tracks and the Rillito River.

Photo courtesy of Arizona Department of Transportation

The overall project will continue through late 2025, when the Sunset Road interchange will reopen.

Other project improvements include:

• Rebuilding the Orange Grove Road bridges to allow for higher clearance;
• New Orange Grove and Sunset road interchanges that will feature additional lanes on entrance and exit ramps to promote safety and reduce delays;
• Replacing all nine bridges in the project area, including those over Canada del Oro Wash and Rillito River;
• Constructing an access path to the Chuck Huckelberry Loop from Sunset Road;
• Related work on lighting, landscaping and drainage.

The I-10 project is part of the Regional Transportation Authority's roadway improvement plan, managed by the Pima Association of Governments.

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