Tucson residents can expect major changes to their travel routes as the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) embarks on a substantial infrastructure overhaul aimed at reducing congestion and enhancing safety on one of the city's most critical freeways. Starting Monday, September 8, at 8 p.m., ADOT will close Country Club Road at Interstate 10 for the purpose of widening I-10 from Kino Parkway to Alvernon Way, an ambitious plan set to persist through the summer of 2026, details confirmed by ADOT's announcement. This closure will allow workers to relocate underground utilities and tackle bridge construction without hindrance; during this time, Country Club Road will serve local traffic exclusively between Irvington Road and Michigan Street, with no through passage beneath I-10.
In a related move of this expansive $600 million project, which also includes the construction of a new Country Club Road interchange, the westbound I-10 on-ramp at Irvington Road will permanently shutter at 8 p.m. tomorrow, directing motorists to the alternate westbound on-ramp at Palo Verde Road, yet in a stroke of planning that minimizes disruption, a fresh on-ramp at Alvernon Road is slated to open on Sunday, Sept. 7, promptly at 7 a.m. promising at least one vein of the traffic flow to remain coursing, albeit along a new pathway.
The scope of the project illustrates ADOT's commitment to not simply expand the freeway but to re-envision it: Widen I-10 to three lanes in each direction, with auxiliary lanes between Kino Parkway and Alvernon Way, bringing forth a reconstructed Kino Parkway interchange, the elimination of the Palo Verde Road interchange in favor of the newly minted Country Club Road junction, and a new westbound on-ramp at Alvernon Way interchange—this coupled with an underpass connection the North and South sections of Kino Sports Complex, as per ADOT's blueprint for the reconstruction of I-10.
While the process promises a more fluid and safer driving experience eventually, it requires patience as the construction, which kicked off less than three months ago and is expected to span until 2028, unfolds, throughout which, ADOT has pledged to maintain a minimum of two lanes of travel on I-10 during peak hours and ensure that local businesses retain access.
