Those weary of the one-lane traffic in both directions on Houghton Road over the Union Pacific Railroad lines are in for a treat next month. The twin bridges, each three lanes across, will open on Dec. 4.
This is the latest phase of the Houghton Road widening project to be completed by the Regional Transportation Authority, which is in the midst of a multi-year plan to widen Houghton from Tanque Verde Road to Interstate 10 to six lanes.
Tucson construction crews are expected to finish painting the lane markers on the bridge next week.
The project is part of the voter-backed $2.1 billion regional transportation plan for the greater Tucson area, authorized back in 2006.
The Houghton Road project also has funding from the city of Tucson and the Federal Highway Administration.
While both bridges are already open to traffic, officials will remove traffic restrictions on all three lanes on the northbound bridge early next month.
However, officials expect to limit traffic to one lane on the southbound bridge for the next 15 months until the portion of Houghton connecting the bridge to Interstate 10 is widened.
A spokesperson for the city of Tucson, Michael Graham, said he expects that phase of the project, with construction expected to start in January, to take between 12 to 14 months to complete.
Down the Road
- The Arizona Department of Transportation is warning drivers of overnight lane closures for road maintenance and bridge work at the Ina Road exit of Interstate 10 on Tuesday. Specifically, the right two lanes of westbound I-10 will be closed for construction. Drivers should proceed with caution and expect delays.
- ADOT also advises that work along a 4-mile section of I-10 near Eloy will start in December, causing some delays as construction begins to shift westbound traffic onto newly-built roads. Eastbound traffic will be moved to the new roads in late December or early January. The construction is part of a larger effort by ADOT to widen I-10 to six lanes in this area and build a new interchange with State Route 87, including new bridges over I-10 and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks.
