The city of Phoenix is toying with new funding options to improve roadway conditions in the city, some of which could jeopardize future light rail projects.
While the Council voted to continue with the controversial two-lane South Central Extension on Sept. 26, debate is ongoing on how to finance road maintenance, which was slashed during the recession, and how it will affect light rail projects going forward.
The Street Transportation Department presented a report to City Council on Sept. 20 which showed the city’s roads were in a state of disrepair. Of the more than 4,863 miles of public roads the Street Department is responsible for, roughly 70 percent are in less than optimum condition.
The report estimated the city would need an additional $1.65 billion to maintain and elevate 4,085 miles of road to minimum good condition. Improving only the arterial and major streets would cost $519 million.
So how are they going to reallocate funds? Here are the five options:
Option 1: Modify distribution of “Improvement Projects”
This option would move funding away from planned “capital improvement projects,” which include measures like adding streetlights, bus shelters and widening roadways. Over five years, this option would add up to $115 million for city street maintenance.
“The tradeoff, though, and this is an important one, is that it would require delaying certain capital improvement projects,” Mario Paniagua, the deputy city manager, said. This includes a roughly $10.7-million-dollar improvement project slated for 99th to 91st avenues along Indian School Road to improve curbs, add bus bays, create landscaping and create bike lanes.
Option 1a: Modify distribution of “Major Project Funds”
This plan would utilize unallocated “major project funds” rather than improvement projects to transfer $46 million over five years to roads. It would reduce funds available for future major projects. Councilwoman Debra Stark noted that after Hurricane Rosa’s flooding, these unallocated funds might be critical for reconstruction.
Option 2: Borrow money from future T2050 plans
This option would utilize future Transportation 2050 funds by advancing payments now and paying them back later. T2050 is a sales tax voters approved in 2015 to fund transportation infrastructure, including light rail extensions, for the next 35 years. Approximately $150 to $200 million could be relocated over five years. However, the money would need to be repaid by $15 million increments for the next 20 years.
Option 3: Borrow money from future HURF plans
Similar to option 2, this plan would borrow from future funding, but rather than dip into T2050, it would dip into the statewide Highway User Revenue Fund, or HURF. It faces the same drawbacks as option 2.
Option 4: Borrow money from future light rail reserves
This option would borrow money from the T2050 light rail reserves to collect $150 to $200 million over five years. This could jeopardize the ability of the light rail program to weather economic instability without large reserves to fall back on and could require refinancing of future projects.
Option 5: Delay West Phoenix Light Rail Extension
This option would delay the West Phoenix Light Rail Extension, which is slated to extend the light rail along Camelback Road from 19th Avenue to 43rd Avenue. With refinancing, $200 million of the extension’s funding could be used for streets by 2023 or 2024. The delayed extension would not be completed or operational by 2050, when T2050 funding expires.
Option 5a: Delay Northeast Light Rail Extension
This option would delay the Northeast Light Rail Extension, which would bring light rail to the Paradise Valley Mall area by 2034. Because its completion date is further out than the West Phoenix extension, its funds would not be available for the Street Department to borrow within the next five years. The light rail extension could, however, provide funding for streets in the future, with the downside that the extension would ultimately not be completed by 2050.
What do advocates think?
The Citizens Transportation Commission, a 15-member panel assembled to represent the community and oversee the implementation of T2050, has given feedback on the options.
“The plan is still pretty new, approved by voters within the last three years, so the first recommendation was that no changes be made,” Paniagua said on behalf of the commission. Paniagua said if required, the committee recommended following either option two or three, borrowing from T2050 or HURF future funds.
The council agenda also noted the light rail projects were shown on the ballot for the voter-approved T2050 plan and should therefore require careful consideration before removal.
Advocates for the light rail are also chiming in.
“The council is being dishonest when it says it would delay the (light rail projects), because it would be delaying it to a time when there is no funding, which is the same as cancelling it,” Sean Sweat, president of the Urban Phoenix Project, said in a previous interview with Downtown Devil.
Contact the reporter at rspiess@asu.edu.
