TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Tucson’s getting $25 Million dollars in Federal money to help fix a bridge that’s so old it can’t handle heavy traffic. Thursday, the U.S. Transportation Secretary came to town to celebrate the grant.
22nd Street is one of the fastest ways across town but if you’re in a heavy truck you are not allowed to use that bridge at all; it is simply too weak for heavy traffic. Now a Federal grant is going to fix that bridge and a lot more.
Federal Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg came to help celebrate a $25 Million dollar grant for a new bridge and other nearby improvements. Along with City and RTA funds the Federal money is enough to green light a project pending for at least 17 years.
The 22nd Street Bridge is so weak it makes it harder for kids to get to school. School buses have to detour around the bridge because they are too heavy. The same goes for fire trucks and lots of heavy cargo trucks.
Preliminary construction activities have begun as part of the 22nd Street Bridge Revitalization Project which will replace the existing weight restricted bridge over the UPRR.
— Tucson Department of Transportation & Mobility (@Tucson_DTM) August 23, 2022
Read more: https://t.co/ORlAzHKOf0
Receive updates on this project: https://t.co/MTrk1MXknh pic.twitter.com/KFxcTQuoPq
Moving metal for recycling means Vanessa Gallego’s recycling business needs heavy trucks. Avoiding the bridge on 22nd costs time and money.
Gallego says, “A barrier like that becomes unsustainable, you know, 22nd should be able to use your vehicle from one place to another but having to divert using other roads. Is just unsustainable. Just adds a lot more time to our commute.”
She is also interested in alternate transportation like bicycling and walking so she’s happy a new project goes beyond a new bridge to safer routes for non-motorized ways to get around.
A better bridge boosts safety for neighborhood streets by reducing heavy trucks detouring through and making it easier for emergency vehicles to get in.
Kevin Porter of the Sugar Hills Coalition says: “The impact is it keeps a lot of trucks from coming through our neighborhoods.” He says, “Sometimes the police don't even use that bridge.”
The project will create room for the Union Pacific rail yards to expand and help encourage more business growth.
Secretary Buttigieg says cities faced tough competition for the grants but Tucson earned its share through a clear need, strong economic benefit and positive impact on nearby neighborhoods. And he says there’s more on the way nationwide to repair and expand our aging transportation systems.
“It really is the dawn of an infrastructure decade. So today, we're excited about this RAISE (Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity) program, 166 grants around the country including right here in Tucson, but soon we'll be talking about more funding on everything from airports to railroads.”
As for 22nd Street, expect to drive on that new bridge in about three years.
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Craig Smith is a reporter for KGUN 9. With more than 40 years of reporting in cities like Tampa, Houston and Austin, Craig has covered more than 40 Space Shuttle launches and covered historic hurricanes like Katrina, Ivan, Andrew and Hugo. Share your story ideas and important issues with Craig by emailing craig.smith@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook and Twitter.
