While on the daily commute to the Arizona State University Downtown Campus, Kenzel Williams, a sophomore, said he noticed that the bus stop he usually waits at had been renovated with a new shaded shelter.
This is just one of the 35 shaded structures installed at bus stops this past fiscal year as part of Phoenix’s Transportation 2050 (T2050) initiative. The plan, which was voter-approved in 2015, allows the city to improve its streets, public transit and light rail through an increased sales tax of 0.7%. This year’s annual report provides an update on the accomplishments made by T2050 and an overview of what is to come for the next five years.
Funding of $248 million was utilized this fiscal year to support ongoing operations and system improvements for buses in the city. Changes were made to include greater bus frequency and additional routes like a new RAPID commuter route that provide southwest Phoenix access to the downtown area, according to the annual T2050 report.
One of the biggest goals is to replace our fleet of buses which are getting pretty old, Brenda Yanez, a spokesperson for the Public Transit Department, said. The transit department has ordered 61 buses, three circulator buses and 25 Dial-a-Ride vehicles this fiscal year, according to the T2050 report.
“People want to have a bus that doesn’t break down, that has a good air conditioning system,” Yanez said.
The Valley Metro Rail light rail system is also being updated. For the downtown area specifically, public meetings were held in January and June for a new extension to the State Capitol and I-10 West.
By 2030, Valley Metro Rail would like to connect downtown Phoenix to the 79th Avenue Park-and Ride in Maryvale, according to the report.
In October 2019, to connect South Phoenix residents to downtown Phoenix, construction began on the South-Central extension. This extension will also include a transit hub downtown, according to the report.
For the city’s streets, the biggest accomplishment has been related to the pavement maintenance program, Ashley Patton, a spokesperson for the Street Transportation Department, said.
“The Street Transportation Department is able to pave approximately three times more major street miles than we did prior to T2050,” Patton said.
Currently, the 2020 paving season planned over 200 miles of overlay, according to the T2050 report. Work has also been done to install street signs, traffic signals, streetlights, bikeways and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant ramps and sidewalks, according to the report.
“T2050 set an ambitious goal for the Street Transportation Department to add a total of 1,080 miles of bike lanes by 2050,” Patton said, “we are currently on track to meet that goal.”
Due to COVID-19, the funding for the T2050 program has been negatively affected. Although public transit was identified as a critical service in Arizona, Phoenix has had to implement bus service reductions, according to the report.
“We’ve had about a 40% ridership decrease,” Yanez said, “however the people who are riding it need the service. We have a big percentage of our ridership that needs the service, that depends on the service.”
Similarly, the Street Transportation Department has lost funding. The gas tax, also known as the Highway User Revenue Fund, or HURF, is a major source of funding for the department. As people are driving less, they are buying less gas, and therefore there is less funding, Patton said.
“We as a department will have some funding implications in future years,” Patton said.
This fiscal year’s budget earmarked about $134 million in T2050 funding for street construction and maintenance projects, according to the report. Although the T2050 budget has been affected by COVID-19, Phoenix is still on track for the next five fiscal years.
A new fare collection system is planned under the Bus Rapid Transit plan, a key component of T2050. The system “will be a whole revamp of our money collection system,” Yanez said.
The system will include mobile fare payments and reloadable smart cards, according to the Bus Rapid Transit website.
For the Street Transportation Department, they plan to install 123 miles of bike lanes and 240 new streetlights.
Contact the reporter at daprest2@asu.edu.
