After three years of construction, the Maclovio Barraza Parkway near downtown Tucson opened Friday.
The new parkway, part of the Downtown Links Project, includes the Broadway and Aviation Parkway intersection to Sixth Street and Stone Avenue.
The parkway also has a four-lane roadway, streetlights, storm drain enhancements and connections for pedestrians and bicyclists, according to the Tucson Department of Transportation.
A ribbon cutting celebration was held Friday. Later in the day the parkway opened to traffic.
Gene Caywood, right, former chair of the Downtown Links Citizen Advisory Panel, looks over a model of the new Maclovio Barraza Parkway prior to its dedication in downtown Tucson on Feb. 17.
While the new parkway is completed, the western part of the Downtown Links project continues to be a work in progress.
Sixth Street, just west of Stone Avenue, remains closed while crews continue to work on a new underpass that will allow motorists to drive under the railroad tracks. Crews also are working on new underground drainage.
Motorists traveling east on Sixth Street, west of Stone Avenue, will continue to use the Church Avenue detour.
Tucson Mayor Regina Romero and Transportation and Mobility director Sam Credio, center, dedicate the Maclovio Barraza Parkway alongside the Barraza family in downtown Tucson on Feb. 17.
The western segment of the project is anticipated to be done by late summer 2024. The whole project is expected to cost about $73 million, the cityβs Transportation Department said.
Once the project is completed, the Maclovio Barraza-Aviation Parkway will connect motorists to Interstate 10, relieving downtown congestion, the Arizona Daily Star has previously reported.
After three years of construction, the Maclovio Barraza Parkway near downtown Tucson opened Friday.
