Tempe, AZ — Streetcar Plans Advance

February 2013

Representatives of Tempe, Mesa, Arizona State University, and Valley Metro, the Phoenix transportation agency, have agreed to conduct an early financial analysis of a streetcar line connection Mesa and Tempe, according to minutes of a meeting held Jan. 7 as reported on the www.azcentral.com site. The parties are planning to evaluate whether private money could be attracted to reduce the amount of public money required for the project. Estimates of the cost and timeframe for the line have not been released. The line would be 2.6 miles long and is projected to cost $129 million, of which $73 million has been made available in a voter-approved county transportation bill.

If the analysis shows the line is a good investment, a full feasibility study would be launched.

Tempe and Valley Metro are already planning another streetcar line that would run on Mill Avenue between Southern Avenue and Rio Salado parkway.

The route would be 3.9 miles long running from Mill Avenue to Dobson Road and would serve signficant traffic generators such as Sun Devil Statium, Tempe Marketplace, the Chicago Cubs spring training facility, and Mesa Riverveiw shopping center.