roadrunner

Drivers traveling south on Kolb Road merge to one lane as they approach construction on Valencia Road. Traffic officials urge drivers to wait until the merge point to move over.

As 2018 comes to a close, we’re looking back on just a few of the many projects and ideas the Road Runner reported on this year.

Projects that stumped Tucson motorists
  • One of the more controversial transportation stories was about a different merging technique used during the city’s road-improvement project to widen Valencia Road between Kolb and Wilmot roads. It’s called the Zipper Merge, where motorists use both lanes until reaching the posted merge point, then alternate merging into the travel lane like a zipper being pulled up — hence the name.

The bad news was that most of us were doing it all wrong. While Tucson Department of Transportation spokesman Michael Graham said it’s effective when used correctly, “the majority of people aren’t utilizing the merge,” Graham said back in October. Construction for the six-lane widening project is scheduled to finish this summer.

  • By next summer, we’ll see Tucson’s newest “Michigan left.” Coming to the south-side Tucson intersection of Drexel Road and Benson Highway will be the indirect left turn, which prevents motorists from immediately turning left at an intersection and instead forces them to continue to a specified U-turn area and then be sent back to make a right turn.

The Pima County Transportation Department says it’ll cut total crashes by 16 percent. But in the five years since the first such turn was created at Grant and Oracle roads, some motorists are still bypassing the U-turn to make an immediate left turn, the department said.

Projects that show glimpses of the future
  • Tucsonans are already driving on the improvements to the 13-mile Houghton Road corridor as part of a $2.1 billion Regional Transportation Authority plan. The project includes bridge work finished this year, widened roads and added amenities like bus pullouts.

The final phase of construction is scheduled for 2022. The corridor may help the east-side area become “one of the most desirable locations to live, work, shop and enjoy a wide variety of diverse outdoor activities,” according to Michael Marietti, the project’s manager.

  • The Arizona Department of Transportation put the finishing touches on the $40 million phase one of the Ajo Way-Interstate 19 interchange in March. The phase included a widened Ajo Way east of I-19 and widened southbound off-ramp at Irvington. The second phase began in July. Crews will add an improved southbound Ajo on-ramp, southbound Irvington Road off-ramp and two new bridges in the area.
  • ADOT crews are also close to making the $128 million widening of I-10 from Tucson to Casa Grande a reality.
  • And in the spring, drivers will find an entirely new Ina Road interchange, including two lanes in each direction on Ina, new frontage roads and new bridges over the Santa Cruz River.
  • Included in the yet-to-be-finished projects is the Downtown Links project, which received bids over initial estimates this year. The project aims to connect drivers from the Barraza-Aviation Parkway to Interstate 10 on a new four-lane road to bypass the frequently congested downtown area. There’s work to be done in 2019.
  • Also, two other potential ADOT projects were announced that would potentially designate Alvernon Way as State Route 210 from Golf Links Road to I-10, while adding a new interchange for access to SR 210 from I-10. Crews would also add two lanes in each direction on I-10 from the I-19 interchange to Alvernon. Up to four lanes would be added on I-10 from Alvernon to Kolb Road.
Projects in the realm of possibility
  • All Aboard Arizona continues its push for a passenger-rail service connecting the Phoenix and Tucson communities. It’s been a years-long process, but representatives of Brightline, which is the only privately run rail service in the nation, are making a visit to gauge interest in the area this spring.
  • Officials from Maricopa, the Gila River Indian Community and ADOT have agreed to study ways to improve a 23-mile stretch of I-10 between Phoenix and Casa Grande. The 18-month study will address improvements such as widening lanes, improving interchanges and bridges near the Gila River Indian Community.
  • One project that had little to do with motorists was the official opening of the “Chuck Huckleberry Loop.” The path features more than 120 miles of paved paths stretching to Oro Valley and Marana, and the finishing touches on the final leg joining the Craycroft Road and North Tanque Verde Road were completed in early 2018. The Loop may see some extensions in 2019.
A story of heartbreak and perseverance
  • Finally, we reported Mike Humphrey’s mission to make roads safer for all along a portion of I-10 after the deaths of his wife and sister. For a decade, he has tried to persuade the Arizona Department of Transportation to install thick steel cables along about 20 miles of I-10 between Tucson and Phoenix, including the area where his sister and wife were killed in a crash. Humphrey admits the fight is tiring, but he isn’t giving up trying to get ADOT to budge on the issue.

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Contact Star reporter Shaq Davis at 573-4218 or sdavis@tucson.com