The city of Tucson announced on Thursday it has received a $25 million Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant to help improve the 22nd Street bridge that connects Kino Parkway to Tucson Boulevard.
The new bridge will be expanded from four to six lanes, feature a divided median and a separate bicycle and pedestrian bridge, a news release from Mayor Regina Romero’s office said.
The announcement of the grant money was made during an event Thursday morning with U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and other dignitaries.
Traffic flows over the new 22nd Street overpass over the Southern Pacific Railroad shortly after it was dedicated in October 1965. At the time, the $2 million project eliminated the long traffic back-ups caused by Southern Pacific Railroad mainline and switching operations at the Tucson yard.
The existing bridge, which was built in the 1960s, can’t carry large vehicles due to weight restrictions. The new bridge will eliminate weight restrictions and detour routes for emergency medical services, school buses, freight vehicles and transit, the news release said.
“The reenvisioned 22nd Street Bridge will reconnect our communities and create safer ways for residents to drive, walk, bike, and move about,” Romero said in the news release. “This project represents an opportunity to invest in neighborhoods where infrastructure has created safety risks and separation.”
The project will provide an east-to-west connection between downtown Tucson for residents. Broadband conduit will also be installed as part of the project for future expansion, the news release said.
Replacing the bridge is also an opportunity for future rail expansion for the trains that run under the bridge, which will help improve the nation’s supply chain infrastructure with faster movement of goods around the country, a news release from the U.S. Department of Transportation said, which provides the grant money to local jurisdictions.
Traffic tie-ups like this one in June 1962 happened several times a day on 22nd Street at the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks in Tucson. Most of the motorists in this picture had to wait 10 minutes for the two-train switching operation. An overpass solved the problem in 1965.
The $25 million grant will not be enough to pay for the whole project. The city also has $70 million for the project, which comes from Regional Transportation Authority funds, Pima County bonds and city dollars.
“I want to thank Director Sam Credio and the City of Tucson Department of Transportation and Mobility who put to work the vision of Mayor and Council for the 22nd Street bridge,” Romero said. “In its current condition the bridge presented structural deficiencies and barriers to connectivity and social equity. This was an extremely competitive process and the team put together a successful RAISE grant.
Projects for the RAISE grant were evaluated on several criteria, including safety, environmental sustainability, quality of life, economic competitiveness and opportunity, partnership and collaboration, innovation, state of good repair, and mobility and community connectivity, the U.S. Department of Transportation said. Within these areas, the Department considered how projects will improve accessibility for all travelers, bolster supply chain efficiency, and support racial equity and economic growth – especially in historically disadvantaged communities and areas of persistent poverty.
In Arizona, four projects, including the 22nd Street project, received RAISE grants.
Construction on the shovel-ready project is scheduled to begin at the end of August.
The Tucson monsoon gave heavy rain and thunder and lightning storms on Aug. 8, 2022. More thunderstorms are expected today in southeast Arizona, according to the National Weather Service.
