by bryan | Oct 15, 2011 | light rail corridor, light rail expansion, News & Information
Phoenix light-rail extension may be getting back on track Courtesy of Sean Holstege – Aug. 16, 2011 The Arizona Republic [Editors Note: The Phoenix 3.2 mile extension compliments Mesa’s 3.1 mile extension. LightRailConnect is a big proponent of the expansion helping business grow in the light rail corridor.] When the recession started biting hard into the region’s transportation plans, the light-rail extension due to open first went toward the back of the list. Workers were weeks away from digging into northwest Phoenix streets in July 2009 when a sharp drop in Phoenix transit-tax revenue forced officials to push the starting date back indefinitely and suspend contracts. Two years later, and three since Metro light rail debuted, transit and city leaders are confident they can find a way to restart the extension around the end of the year. The project would add 3.2 miles of track and three stations north of Montebello Station on 19th Avenue. “The mayor is challenging us to get this done by December,” said Metro CEO Steve Banta, referring to Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon. “It’s the most shovel-ready project we have.” Building the line won’t require new taxes, Phoenix officials say. Because of improving revenues from a city transit sales tax, Phoenix can issue bonds to cover most of the cost, they say. Resurrecting the project will require votes from Metro’s board and a regional transportation group, as well as a fresh agreement with contractors. If all goes well, Metro says, passengers could ride the line in 2015 – three years late. The extension will require Metro to run more trains on the line to maintain its existing...
by bryan | Oct 15, 2011 | light rail apartments and rentals, Light Rail Condo and Townhouse, News & Information
Downtown Phoenix move has saved couple lots of money, time [Editors Note: 44 Monroe is one of may upscale living spaces to live along light rail. You can find more about Live, Work and Play at LightRailConnect.com] Courtesy of Emily Gersema – Sept. 29, 2011 The Arizona Republic A year ago, the Helgesons were celebrating a makeover of their Queen Creek home by TV star designer Nate Berkus. This year, Jessica and Cody Helgeson have turned that southeast Valley home into a rental and are celebrating their recent move to a high-rise in downtown Phoenix, 44 Monroe. Moving downtown has saved them hundreds of dollars a month in gas, reduced their headaches, eliminated their long commutes and improved their social lives, they said. The switch from suburban to urban life has its price. They lost nearly 800 square feet of space and a lush green yard. Do they miss it? “We haven’t really,” said Cody Helgeson, 26. “We had a yard that was all landscaped, but at the same time, we were paying a gardener to come out every week.” “Here we have Civic Space Park,” he said. “It’s not even a block away.” 44 Monroe in Phoenix The Helgesons are among an influx of new tenants at the 202-unit, 34-story building at First Avenue and Monroe Street. The tower once intended for condos is around 75 percent full, rebounding from a slump that began with the housing-market crash a few years ago and foreclosures tied to the bankruptcy of lender Mortgages Ltd. A year ago, a new company in Chicago, ST Residential, bought the tower out of foreclosure and opened...
by bryan | Oct 15, 2011 | light rail corridor, News & Information, Sports
P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona courses get facelift going into ninth year Courtesy of Jeff Metcalfe – Sept. 28, 2011 The Arizona Republic [Editors Note: The January 15th P.F Chang’s Rock n’ Roll Arizona bumps onto the light rail corridor numerous places. LightRaiConnect.com is a strong supporter of the race!] The P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Marathon and 1/2 Marathon is getting a course face-lift going into its ninth running Jan. 15. The start line for the 13.1-mile half marathon is being moved to downtown Tempe with the course to include a downhill section in Papago Park. The 26.2-mile marathon start will remain in downtown Phoenix but shift from the State Capitol area to CityScape, with other changes in the second half of the course. The races will overlap on opposite sides of Mill Avenue Bridge in Tempe and Rio Salado Parkway to finishes near Sun Devil Stadium. “The half-marathon route and (transportation) buses have been our biggest complaints,” said Alan Culpepper, a two-time Olympian and 2004 Olympic Marathon Trials champion who designed the course changes for the Competitor Group. “We’ve changed both of those. “It’s been one of our marquee events, and it’s time for the course to live up to how great the Valley is. We made the half (marathon) more convenient for the runners with a nicer, more-scenic route.” Runners will be able to take the light rail to and from the start/finish lines, depending where they park or are housed if visiting the Valley, likely eliminating the need for the bus transportation that was required in the past. Race organizers still are working out details...
by bryan | Oct 15, 2011 | light rail corridor, News & Information, Valley Metro
Phoenix light rail: Private rail security urged Courtesy of Emily Gersema – Sept. 6, 2011 The Arizona Republic [Editors Note: Any large city has security concerns. LightRailConnect.com supports the move to private security.] Mesa and Tempe have a private-security company to monitor Metro light-rail passengers in their areas, but Phoenix has continued to rely on its police force to check on passengers and be on watch for crime at platforms and in the trains. That appears about to change. The Phoenix Citizens Transit Commission last week unanimously approved a proposal for the Police Department to switch to a private-security company to monitor the passengers for the Phoenix stretch of the 19-mile light-rail system. The measure now goes to the Transportation, Infrastructure and Sustainability Subcommittee and the City Council, which are expected to approve it later this month. Cmdr. Jeff Alexander of the Phoenix Public Transit Police Bureau told the commission that Metro light rail has a goal that police or security officers inspect around 20 percent of all fares to be sure light-rail passengers are paying and validating their passes. “We have struggled with that,” Alexander said. “We have never been able to attain that goal without having outside resources or using more officers or putting more officers on the train.” Mesa and Tempe rely on G4S, the company formerly known as Wackenhut, to monitor passengers and check fares. G4S security officers are easily recognized by their white shirts with purple sleeve badges and dark pants, and they carry handheld devices that, with a quick swipe, can check a rider’s ticket and determine whether it’s valid. This helps Metro light rail...
by bryan | Oct 15, 2011 | News & Information, Valley Metro
courtesy of Emily Gersema – Sept. 13, 2011 The Arizona Republic [Editors Note: LightRailConnect.com urges every rider to be cautious and don’t run for trains. The next one is only about 10 minutes away.] New brochures and signs on light-rail platforms and inside trains are urging riders not to run for the train in an educational effort by Metro light rail that began last month. Metro light-rail spokeswoman Hillary Foose said the agency launches a safety campaign every year. “While we still continue to talk about driver safety, we felt it was necessary to also think about pedestrian and passenger safety,” Foose said. “The idea behind it was to curb the really dangerous jaywalking.” Posters and brochures say: “Dying to get there? Don’t run for the train. Your life depends on it.” The light rail spans 19 miles across Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa, and it is has been in operation since 2008. In the fiscal year that ended June 30, there were two pedestrian-involved incidents, according to Metro. By coincidence, Metro light rail’s safety campaign started last month after a national group, Transportation for America, ranked the Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale metropolitan area as the eighth-deadliest area for pedestrians out of 52 metropolitan areas in a nine-year period. The group’s report tried to account for all pedestrian deaths involving transportation from 2000 to 2009, but it did not break down incidents according to the type of transportation they involved. Phoenix officials have disagreed with the count, but the report said the Phoenix metro area had a rate of 2.3 deaths per 100,000 people, with 867 pedestrian fatalities in nine years Orlando-Kissimmee in Florida had the highest rate of...
by bryan | Oct 15, 2011 | News & Information
courtesy of by Ryan Randazzo – Sept. 28, 2011 The Arizona Republic Phoenix is having a hard time giving away stimulus money to those who live along the light rail to make their homes more energy efficient, although businesses have been snapping up the funds. The city was awarded a $25 million grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or stimulus, and has spent only about $7.78 million of that as of Sept. 23, according to the Energy Department records. The money must be spent by June 2013. Several businesses, from small barbershops to large commercial buildings, have taken advantage of the money, but getting homeowners to participate has been more difficult, even with Arizona State University students knocking on doors to spread information about the offer, officials said. “The residential side has been a little slow, but that is not unusual,” said Carolyn Bristo, Phoenix’s sustainability coordinator overseeing the project. Even though the project faces a deadline, Bristo said she is not worried. “It will get spent,” she said. People who live within a half mile of the rail from Central Avenue and Camelback Road to 44th and Washington streets qualify for the money. Arizona Public Service Co. and Salt River Project offer $99 home-energy audits, where a contractor performs an in-depth analysis to determine the best way to save electricity. People in the corridor have to pay up-front for that audit, but get a full rebate. Then the Energize Phoenix program will match efficiency rebates from APS, which serves the area, so that cooling-system upgrades, duct repairs, attic insulation, shade screens and other repairs are mostly paid for. Bristo said...
