TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Construction workers are tearing down former businesses and cutting into parking lots to make space for new lanes on Grant Road.
“It needs to be done, overall. I think it’ll be really great once it’s finished,” said Laura Sanaghan, a stylist at Tullia on Grant.
It’s part of the Grant Road Improvement Project. The City and Regional Transportation Authority will expand Grant to have six lanes from Oracle to Swan. They’re also adding bus pullouts, wider sidewalks, and bike lanes.
“I’ve been hearing about the Grant Road Project for a few years now and I'm ready for it to get started, to get done,” Sanaghan said.
Business owners in Grant Plaza brace themselves as construction moves closer to their lot. They will soon lose around a dozen parking spaces as a result of the road widening.
“It will affect the entire parking lot,” said Melodie Gilbertson, Owner of Connections on Grant.
Gilbertson is concerned about finding a parking spot everyday, and road access.
“They wont be able to turn left into the center anymore," Gilbertson said. "If you’re coming from the east it’ll be difficult to access the center.”
The City will put a median in the middle of traffic to enforce indirect left turns. That means if you want to take a left turn on this part of Grant, you'll have to go straight, make a U-turn, and then take a right. The City says this change will reduce the amount of time you spend at intersections by 42%.
“You just get stuck out there pretty fast and it gets backed up really easily,” Sanaghan said.
And improving flow of traffic is one change everyone can get behind.
“When they actually come out here and do the road, it’s probably going to go so fast,” Gilbertson said.
Construction for this phase of the project is expected to be complete by 2025.
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