Mesa Mayor says Uncle Sam likes Light Rail Extension to Gilbert Rd

by | Sep 30, 2010 | light rail expansion, News & Information

Mayor Scott Smith has been in meetings with the federal government on transportation issues.  The report is the the Federal Government likes the additional two miles to Gilbert Road past the currently planned 3.1 mile extension. The Feds said they would try to get the $20 million needed for the 1st step of the 3.1 mile extension into Mesa. The additional 2 miles will take more time and effort in planning....

New LightRailConnect Magazine distribution boxes

by | Sep 5, 2010 | light rail corridor, light rail expansion, LightRailConnect.com Magazine

Now you can find your copy of the LightRailConnect.com Magazine in more places. You can’t miss them. They are red-orange with a vinyl sticker on the side that announces ‘LightRailConnect.com’. You will find another 20 boxes on or near light rail station stops. There are other older versions in place, but these new ones are better looking and more distinctive. Inside you will discover sections on Travel, Jobs, Real Estate & Rentals, Sports, Dining, Arts & Entertainment. Get connected with text coupons and restaurant specials. Find places to rent your next apartment home. Please look for the latest copy of the LightRailConnect.com Magazine in a box near the station or...

Phoenix SkyTrain is coming

by | Sep 5, 2010 | light rail expansion, News & Information

    Watch it grow. The light rail extension to Phoenix Sky Harbor airport is well under construction and making progress. When completed, the above-ground transportation system will deliver thousands of passengers from the 44th street/Washington station to each of the airport terminals. The system is designed to be an automatic serviced train with no conductor, the same as in other airports. It is named Skytrain because it is being constructed above the ground, therefore bypassing the issues of normal construction that the current system has featured on an existing street or path. Watch for more developments to...

Feds o.k. the next Mesa Light Rail Extension Step

by | Aug 17, 2010 | light rail expansion, News & Information, Uncategorized

So, now, full speed ahead until the next ‘Full Stop’ Federal review meeting arrives. The Federal government has approved the next process steps in the 3 mile extension of the light rail tracks down Main Street to Mesa Drive. There is still a long list of requirements for Metro to complete, but that has to be assumed to be automatically done and complied with at this stage. The 3.1 mile extension will continue from the current end station at Sycamore and Main St, down Main Street to Hobson Street, which lies just to the east of Mesa Drive. It is estimated that the Federal Government will contribute $110 million to the project. The additional $200 million will come from the Sales Tax in the County. The design is complicated and meticulous; it can take two full years to complete. So, don’t buy your tickets just yet. They may expire before the train glides over the...

Light Rail Construction still goes on…

by | Jul 10, 2010 | light rail corridor, light rail expansion, News & Information

Just when we heard for months and months how low the Phoenix city coffers are, there is still plenty of money to buy up and demolish homes, prepare utility relocation, all to prepare 19th Ave for the 3-mile light rail extension. The work will be completed between Butler Drive and Townley Avenue. The project is supposed to last 6 months, and will prepare the frontage roads for ongoing construction work. And in August, you will begin to see the installation of a Phoenix Arts Commission-funded gabion wall. It is scheduled in the Washington Park area north of Bethany Home Road. What is that, you ask? (so did I!). It is a wall that is made of stacked steel cages filled with fractured granite and will be 8 feet tall by 3 feet wide. You can be the first in your neighborhood to have one! Keep an eye out for it. -information courtesy of AZ...