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Scottsdale panel will review transit proposals
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IN TRANSIT: A bus pulls away from a stop on Princess Drive near Scottsdale Road.
Tribune
Proposals to make it easier to bike, walk and ride transit in Scottsdale will be reviewed by a city advisory panel on Thursday.
The Scottsdale Transportation Commission is scheduled to review and make recommendations on these portions of the citywide Transportation Master Plan at 6 p.m. Thursday at City Hall, 3939 N. Drinkwater Blvd.
The City Council will then be asked to adopt the entire master plan on Jan. 8, ending a more than two-year, $1.2 million process that, in addition to bike, pedestrian and transit plans, also studied streets and downtown, airpark and northern area circulation plans.
The most controversial element of the plan was the study of potential high-capacity transit options on Scottsdale Road, including light rail, modern streetcar and bus rapid transit.
Earlier this month, the council agreed to spend $50,000 a year to join Valley Metro Rail, the light-rail operating group that also includes Tempe, Mesa, Chandler, Phoenix, Glendale and Peoria.
Valley Metro Rail is embarking on a two-year study of possible light-rail extensions along Rural Road or nearby corridors, south from University Drive. There is no current plan to study light rail on Scottsdale Road north of Loop 202, but Scottsdale would now be in a position to discuss such an option.
The Transportation Commission is also expected Thursday to discuss the plan’s funding and priorities, expected to continue over the next couple of months, said Jim McIntyre, a city transportation spokesman. The council is expected to agree on an implementation plan in the spring.
An early estimate puts costs at more than $500 million, not including middle-term and long-term transit options as well as the potential for light rail and streetcar, which cost about $70 million a mile and $30 million a mile to construct, respectively.
The bike, pedestrian and transit plans recommend providing more options, including spending 33 percent of the transportation construction budget on such uses. The current percentage is 26 percent. The consultant, HDR Engineering, proposes more bike lanes, more midblock pedestrian crossings in urban areas, providing better connections to paths, and providing more frequent bus service and expanded trolley routes.
The consulting firm does not make a recommendation on light rail or streetcar, instead encouraging further study on those options.
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