From: "Friends Of Transit NEWS" To: "Friends of Transit NEWS" Subject: light rail maintenance and storage facility Date: Tuesday, June 26, 2001 7:27 PM The Phoenix City Council today approved the location of the light rail maintenance and storage facility. A release with more information from Valley Connections is attached below. The selection of the maintenance and storage facility is a critical milestone in the project schedule, because we will need to have the facility ready by mid-2005 to start receiving the first shipment of vehicles. The Council applauded our efforts to work with the community to identify a new location that is acceptable to neighborhood residents and property owners. Thank You, David Schwartz david@friendsoftransit.org http://www.friendsoftransit.org For More Information, contact: Daina Mann, Communications Manager (602) 744-5592 or (602) 291-RAIL (7245) cellular Light Rail Maintenance Facility Site Selected (June 26, 2001 - Phoenix) - The Phoenix City Council today approved the location of the maintenance and storage facility for the Central Phoenix/East Valley Light Rail Transit Project. Selection of this facility is a critical milestone in the project schedule, because it will need to house the light rail vehicles when they begin arriving in mid-2005 - a year-and-half before the system is scheduled to open in late 2006. The facility is located in East Phoenix near the junction of the Red Mountain Freeway (Loop 202) and the Hohokam Expressway (Highway 143). The site was selected primarily because of its proximity to the light rail main line, its centralized location along the route and industrial zoning characteristics. The site is also owned by the City of Phoenix and will cost less to develop than the alternate location. At a community meeting held by the light rail project about the facility, the site was the favored choice of the neighboring community between two possible locations. The maintenance and storage facility will be used to clean, inspect, repair and maintain the light rail vehicles, as well as to store them when they are not in use. It will initially house an estimated 40 vehicles, but will be designed to accommodate up to 100 vehicles. The bulk of the maintenance activities will occur at night. Approximately 250 people will be employed initially at the site, including light rail operators, who will check in for their shifts at the facility. The 20.3-mile starter segment of the light rail line is scheduled to begin construction in mid-2003 and start operations in late-2006. The initial route begins in Phoenix at 19th Avenue and Bethany Home Road and travels through downtown Phoenix, Tempe and about a mile into Mesa at Longmore and Main Streets. ###