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South Columbus Boulevard Closure at Grant Road
On Monday, July 14, 2025, at approximately midnight, crews are scheduled to close Columbus Boulevard south of Grant Road in preparation for several months of extensive underground utility work.
For details of the work being performed, please see our video.
Through October 2025, travel restrictions will be in place at this intersection. Crews will be adding new water lines, new sewer lines and underground storm drain improvements in this area that require deep excavation across Columbus Boulevard.
Also, on Monday July 14, between midnight at 6 a.m., traffic on Grant Road between Sparkman Boulevard and Alvernon Way will be shifted from the north side of the roadway onto the newly paved south side of the roadway to allow crews to conduct work on the north side. Left turns will be prohibited, business access will be maintained.
This schedule is subject to change due to inclement weather or unforeseen circumstances.
The Grant Road Improvement Project from Sparkman Boulevard to Swan Road started in late May 2024. At completion, this improvement project will include six travel lanes, landscaped medians, buffered bike lanes, sidewalks, transit stop upgrades, indirect left turns and protected intersection improvements at Alvernon Way and Grant Road. A 96-inch diameter underground storm drain system will also be constructed throughout the project limits. This project is expected to be complete by the end of 2026.
The Regional Transportation Authority, a political subdivision of the state and independently governed, has invested more than $1.4 billion in transportation projects and services to improve mobility, safety, economic vitality and quality of life in the region. The RTA collects a half-cent excise (sales) tax from its special taxing district within Pima County to fund its 20-year regional transportation plan. The plan and tax were approved by voters in May 2006. The Grant Road Phase 3&4 Improvement Project is part of the RTA plan and is managed by the City of Tucson. For more information, visit www.RTAmobility.com
Grant Road Phase 3&4 updated - May 8, 2025
At the start of this improvement project the original plan was to complete all underground work first, but after getting that work (Phases 1 & 2, underground sewer, water, & storm drain) to the halfway point (Alvernon, having worked their way from west to east) it became clear that the contractor, Granite Construction, needed to begin roadwork to complete the project on time. Below is the current schedule information from Granite. As with any schedule, this may change as field conditions vary.
Granite and the City realize that closing the side streets at Grant during construction is a big inconvenience for everyone that lives in the neighborhoods, but the alternative of keeping these side streets open invites impatient Grant Road traffic to pull into those neighborhoods, often at unsafe speeds. Neither option is ideal, but the way we are doing it is the safer option. It also cuts out the confusion that comes with constantly opening and closing access points.
Phase 3 (south side of Grant, from Rita to Alvernon) is currently scheduled to have the first level of asphalt placed at the end of this month (May '25), at which point Granite will flip traffic onto the south side and begin Phase 4 (north side of Grant, from Edith to Alvernon) which is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2025. When Granite begins Phase 4, they will reopen the Phase 3 side streets on the south side of Grant to traffic. There will still be periodic closures at the intersections and along the south side for landscape work and the top lift of asphalt pavement.
While the work is happening on the west half of the project, Granite's underground crews will continue with Phases 1 & 2 (underground utilities), from Alvernon to Venice, until they complete that work in the middle of 2026. As with all the other road closures for Phases 1 & 2, Columbus Road will need to be closed to install the crossing utilities. This is just for the south leg of Columbus and work is being coordinated to minimize the disruption. This is planned to be a 6–8-week closure and would start within 5-7 weeks. We understand this is not ideal; however, it will be the safest way to complete the work.
Work on Phase 5 (south side of Grant, from Alvernon to Venice) begins in 2026 with completion slated for mid-2026, followed by Phase 6 (north side of Grant, from Alvernon to Venice), followed by Phase 7 which is the remaining street work at Alvernon itself, and then final completion by October 2026. Again, as with any schedule, these dates and phasing may change as field conditions vary.
Project Updates/Announcements:
- Phase 3-4 Construction to Begin on Monday, May 20, 2024
- Task Force Meeting, April 4, 2024 @ 5:30pm. Location - Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson Midtown Club House 3155 E. Grant Road (Grant & Country Club)
- Pre-Construction Open House, Saturday April 13, 2024, 11am - 12:30pm. Location - 4010 E. Grant Road