PHOENIX – About three months after completing the first phase of improvements to the interchange of Interstate 19 and Ajo Way in Tucson, Arizona Department of Transportation crews have begun the second half of the project.

Work on water and sewer lines to clear the way for the project started this week. Drivers likely won’t see restrictions on area roads until this fall.

The $32 million project includes building a new bridge over the Santa Cruz River, widening Ajo Way between I-19 and Holiday Isle Boulevard, replacing the pedestrian bridge at Michigan Street and creating a braided ramp south of Ajo Way (State Route 86). The Pima Association of Governments, the regional transportation-planning agency, is contributing about $6 million toward the cost.

The braided ramp will have the entrance ramp to southbound I-19 at Ajo Way going over the exit ramp for Irvington Road. The design avoids having drivers maneuver around each other as they enter or exit the freeway. Some of the work to create the braided ramp was completed during the first phase of the project.

Work on the second phase is expected to take about 18 months and should be complete in January 2020.

Improvements during the $54 million first phase included a wider Ajo Way bridge over I-19, new ramps and new interchange design with a single set of signals controlling traffic flow. Other improvements included a wider Irvington Road exit lane, noise walls from Ajo Way south to Irvington Road, a wider Ajo Way east of I-19, a repaved Elizabeth Drive and a reconstructed Lamar Avenue.

TUCSON – With a new, wider bridge carrying Ajo Way (State Route 86) over Interstate 19 and an innovative interchange design managing traffic with one set of signals, the Arizona Department of Transportation is wrapping up the first phase of improvements for a growing area south of downtown Tucson.

While crews are scheduled to finish the final details this month, ADOT engineers are already planning the second phase, which will improve traffic flow in the area around the interchange.

Expected to begin late this summer and take 18 months to complete, the second phase includes widening a section of I-19, replacing the Santa Cruz River bridge on Ajo Way and widening Ajo Way from Holiday Isle Boulevard to I-19. It also will create a ramp from Ajo Way to southbound I-19 that crosses over southbound I-19 traffic exiting at Irvington Road, creating a braided configuration that separates exiting and entering traffic.

The estimated cost of phase two improvements is $29 million.

Phase one improvements, which cost about $40 million, created a new bridge over I-19 with a Single-Point Urban Interchange that has one set of signals controlling all traffic on Ajo Way and ramps to and from I-19. This design enhances safety and is more efficient than traditional interchanges because drivers move through just one set of traffic signals.

Other phase one improvements include a wider Irvington Road exit lane, noise walls from Ajo Way south to Irvington, a wider Ajo Way east of I-19, a repaved Elizabeth Drive and a reconstructed Lamar Avenue.

TUCSON ‒ Removing the bridge that once carried westbound Interstate 10 traffic over Ina Road was the first step in what will be a busy 2018 in the Tucson area for the Arizona Department of Transportation.

Tucson will see the completion of the first phase of renovations at Ajo Way and Interstate 19, the near completion of a new interchange at I-10 and Ina Road and a project to ease congestion at I-10 interchanges serving fast-growing areas east of downtown Tucson.

At Ajo Way (State Route 86), ADOT has created a single-point urban interchange, the third in the Tucson area with a single set of traffic signals controlling all traffic movements. After the first phase of the project is complete this spring, ADOT will prepare for the 18-month second phase of work, which will widen Ajo Way and I-19, create a new Ajo Way bridge over the Santa Cruz River and construct a new Michigan Avenue pedestrian bridge over I-19.

The first phase of the Ajo Way project cost about $40 million, and the second phase is estimated to cost $27 million.

On the last weekend in January, westbound I-10 traffic at Ina Road in Marana will begin sharing the new pavement that now carries eastbound traffic, with a concrete barrier separating the directions of travel. The move will allow construction crews to build the eastern half of the Ina Road bridge and complete the remaining work to widen both I-10 and Ina Road. The project, which also includes a second new bridge carrying Ina Road over the Santa Cruz River, is on schedule for completion in early 2019.

ADOT is overseeing the $128 million Ina Road project, which is funded by the Federal Highway Administration, the Pima Association of Governments and the Regional Transportation Authority. The town of Marana is contributing $7.9 million toward the cost of the new bridges over the Santa Cruz River west of I-10.

East of downtown Tucson, ADOT will continue making improvements to several interchanges to improve traffic flow. In 2017, ADOT added a traffic signal and a right turn bay at the end of the Houghton Road eastbound exit ramp. Beginning this spring, crews will start adding traffic signals at the eastbound 10 exits for Wilmot, Rita and Kolb roads, with the work scheduled for completion before the end of the year. At Rita Road, crews will add a right turn lane on the eastbound exit and a second merging lane for the westbound on-ramp.

TUCSON ‒ It may not be immediately apparent to those using the busy interchange of Interstate 19 and Ajo Way (State Route 86), but a single set of signals will soon control traffic in a configuration designed for efficiency and safety.

I-19 and Ajo Way soon will become the Arizona Department of Transportation’s third single-point urban interchange in the Tucson area. Others are at I-19 and Valencia Road, and at Kino Parkway and State Route 210 (Barraza-Aviation Parkway).

“We have an opportunity at Ajo Way and I-19 to use a design that allows traffic to move more efficiently through the intersection more quickly because drivers only have to move through one set of lights instead of two,” said James Gomes, regional traffic engineer for ADOT’s South Central District.

Temporary signals are in place at Ajo Way at this time. The new signals are scheduled to begin operating in January.

Created in 1974 in Clearwater, Florida, the design is often used when an interchange is being reconstructed. In a single-point urban interchange, left-turn drivers from opposite directions can move through the intersection at the same time. Among its other benefits, the design accommodates larger vehicles, including trucks and recreational vehicles, even better than traditional diamond interchanges.

This design has safety advantages as well. While the rate of collisions is about the same, the single-point urban interchange has a lower rate of injuries and fatalities.

After crews poured the new bridge deck over last weekend, the first phase of the project, which also includes widening Ajo Way and improved exit ramps at Ajo Way and Irvington Road, remains on schedule for completion in the spring. The second phase, which hasn’t yet accepted bids from potential contractors, will include widening southbound I-19, an additional transition lane for northbound traffic between Irvington and Ajo Way and improvements on Ajo Way that include a new bridge over the Santa Cruz River.

PHOENIX – Southern Arizona residents and business operators are invited to ask questions and offer comments about options for improving the Interstate 19 east frontage road between Rio Rico and Ruby Road at a public meeting on Sept. 13.

The event will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Calabasas Middle School, 131 Camino Maricopa in Rio Rico. The meeting will be an open house format with a presentation beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Community input will help determine which alternative will be selected for design and construction of improvements on the east frontage road.

During a 30-day comment period beginning Sept. 13, comments also can be submitted in these ways:

• Call the ADOT Bilingual Project Information Line at 855.712.8530
• Email to [email protected]
• Mail written comments to ADOT Communications, 1655 W. Jackson St., MD 126F, Phoenix, AZ,  85007

Comments must be received by Oct. 13 to be included in the public record.

Please visit the azdot.gov/i19ruby for more information.

TUCSON – Work to allow drivers to begin using the new Ajo Way bridge over Interstate 19 will mean travel restrictions beginning this week and continuing into late August.

Crews are preparing access roads and installing traffic signals that will allow traffic to begin using the new bridge, which is six feet higher and just south of the existing Ajo Way (State Route 86) bridge.

Beginning this week, I-19 will be reduced to one lane in each direction, from one mile north of Ajo Way to one mile south.

The I-19 on- and off-ramps at Ajo will close at 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 12. Both the southbound on-ramp and the northbound off-ramp are scheduled to reopen by 5 a.m. Friday, July 14. Traffic signals at Ajo Way will be turned off from 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 12, until 5 a.m. Friday, July 14. Law enforcement will direct traffic while the signals are off.

The southbound off-ramp and the northbound on-ramp are scheduled to remain closed until late August.

During those ramp closures, drivers will be encouraged to use the ramps at 29th Street or Irvington Road.

Crews are replacing the current bridge with a wider bridge that will include a single-point urban interchange, which uses a single set of traffic signals to control traffic entering and exiting I-19. The project, which is expected to continue through summer 2018, also includes new ramps and walls to reduce noise to adjacent neighborhoods and commercial areas.