TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — While thousands of cyclists are preparing to hit the streets on Saturday for the 40th Annual El Tour de Tucson, drivers across town are also preparing for potential detours, with around two dozen roads closing for the event.
A few of those closures are happening downtown, where the 102-mile race will begin at the Tucson Convention Center.
Eric Williams owns the Mortal Skate Shop located near some of the closures. He said he doesn’t think closures near his business will affect his commute to work.
“No, I don’t see any problem,” he said. “We start off kind of late. We open at 12 and close at 7 p.m.”
Several roads in the downtown area will be closed starting at 4 and lasting until around 11:30 in the morning on Saturday.
However, the Executive Director for El Tour de Tucson, TJ Juskiewicz, says each road will reopen as the last rider passes through. All closed roads are anticipated to be opened by 5 o’clock on Saturday.
He also added that there will be an increased police presence.
“There’s probably about 400 law enforcement officers that’ll be out on the route just making sure that we’re keeping cyclists safe as well as motorists because we’ve got a lot of traffic that’s going on.”
Closures near downtown include 12th Street, where Rosie Crocker runs her local business, Arizona Poppy. The business owner, who bikes to work every day, says she doesn’t mind the road closures.
“I do a lot of different pop-up markets, so I think to sacrifice the streets for a day is worth the community aspect,” she explained.
That community aspect is one reason the annual event has been around for 40 years.
A full list of closures can be found here.
——-
Kenny Darr is a reporter for KGUN 9. He joined the team in January 2023. Before arriving in Arizona he was an Anchor and Reporter at KADN in Lafayette, LA. Share your story ideas with Kenny by emailing kenny.darr@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.