City and transportation officials hope the light rail spurs passed by City Council last Tuesday will bring development to the areas surrounding downtown.
Vice Mayor and District 5 Councilman Daniel Valenzuela, a major proponent of the light rail, praised the plan for the new extensions.
“Light rail has a proven track record of serving as a critical tool for both economic development and neighborhood revitalization,” he said. “We know that creating a vibrant, welcoming, connected community and a thriving economy go hand in hand.”
The State Capitol light rail spur is split into two phases, Valley Metro spokeswoman Susan Tierney said. The first phase, ending at the Capitol will begin construction in 2019, with completion scheduled for 2023. Phase two will be complete by 2030, ending at 79th Avenue and Interstate 10.
The South Central light rail spur will extend south to Baseline Road, connecting the Warehouse District to the rest of the light rail. The extension will be complete and operational by 2023, 11 years earlier than originally proposed as part of the Transportation 2050 plan, said Albert Santana, assistant city manager.
Transportation 2050, a 35-year plan financed by an increased sales tax rate passed in August 2015, is meant to replace T2000, the previous transportation plan. One of the major elements of Transportation 2050 is adding 42 miles of light rail onto the current light rail line, which is 23 miles long, according to Valley Metro.
The city will help prepare businesses that are along the new light rail routes to minimize economic damage to the businesses during construction and keep them open, Tierney said. The city will provide numerous business programs to reach out and keep contact open, she said.
“We help them try to understand — and communicate as clearly as possible — when construction will be occurring and what types of things that we can do to keep access to their business open to the nearby communities,” Tierney said.
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Tierney said the city’s previous business programs saw success for the first 20 miles of light rail, and she believes the same should be true with the upcoming programs as well.
The estimated cost of a mile of light rail construction is $80 million to $130 million, Tierney said. An exact overall cost is currently unknown because the environmental studies for both the South Central and Capitol light rail spurs have not yet been completed, which is required before an exact overall cost can be calculated.
Tierney said the surrounding half-mile of the original 20 miles of the light rail received $8.5 billion in private investments during construction of the light rail.
“The community along South Central down to Baseline is looking forward to that economic investment that typically occurs along with the light rail construction,” Tierney said.
District 2 Councilman Jim Waring opposed the light rail extensions.
“The vast majority of my constituents won’t live anywhere close to light rail, but they will be paying taxes the whole way through,” he said.
Waring said light rail is used for 2 percent of trips in the Phoenix area, citing a Valley Metro report. The light rail is too expensive for the amount of riders it has, he said.
“If you think it is helping, if you think it is moving people around, it’s not,” he said.
Waring said the city should instead invest in expanding and upgrading the bus system, due to its flexibility and relatively low cost to the city and taxpayers, to suit the residents of Phoenix best.
Contact the reporter at Kmlane5@asu.edu.
