May 28, 2008

In the News:
Police plan tougher stance on foot traffic near light rail, The Arizona Republic, May 23, 2008
Experimental Orbit bus route in Tempe a big hit, Tribune, May 27, 2008
Transportation tax survey yields mixed results, Tribune, May 28, 2008

Don’t forget to visit Friends of Transit on the web at www.friendsoftransit.org!

 

Police plan tougher stance on foot traffic near light rail
by Dianna M. Náñez
May. 23, 2008 03:29 PM
The Arizona Republic

Arizona State University students who got into the habit of using the light-rail line as a walking path this year could be in for a $156 surprise when they return to campus for the fall semester.

Beginning Sept. 1, the week after classes resume, Tempe police plan to start issuing citations for anyone who crosses the tracks outside designated crosswalks.

While officers are letting jaywalkers off with warnings now, the risk of injuries involving the rail line has increased the need to clamp down, said Brandon Banks, a police spokesman.

"Obviously, it's going to be new to everybody in the Valley. We want to start teaching people the importance of obeying all the light-rail traffic devices," he said.

Steere said Metro is working with Tempe and Phoenix traffic and police departments to study pedestrian and traffic patterns in high-traffic areas such as near ASU's fraternity row and Chase Field in downtown Phoenix.

Steere's team observed foot traffic during ASU's graduation week earlier this month to see where people were crossing and how many were not using crosswalks.

"We found they're using it (light rail) as their own personal pathway," Steere said.

Banks said the police probably would issue citations under a state statute, although it has not been decided.

"More than likely, it will be failure to obey a traffic-control device. That citation's typical fine is $156," he said.

Banks said the fine could change if the state decides to adopt a law specific to light-rail violations.

Hillary Foose, a Metro spokeswoman, said the agency is working with the Phoenix Police Department and the city's streets team to develop a "light-rail-specific ordinance."

Foose said the ordinance would have a citation fee attached to it, but the amount would be undetermined until the Phoenix City Council approves the ordinance.

The rail also will head about a mile into Mesa on Main Street. Diana Tapia, a Mesa police spokeswoman, said that city also plans to enforce light-rail safety with verbal warnings, then shift to citations.

J.J. Fonville, 21, belongs to Sigma Nu Fraternity at Sixth Street and Alpha Drive in Tempe, across from Wells Fargo Arena and the light-rail track. Fonville was outraged to hear the fine could be so high.

"That's ridiculous, students can't afford that," he said.

Aside from the money, Fonville said he is more concerned with the safety campaign being realistic about the number of people who are not using crosswalks. He said even a large fine would not deter most people.

"People cross the rail in the street all the time. Especially people coming home who've been drinking. They're not going to pay attention to a sign. There's going to be an accident there," he said.

Fonville said he hopes cities would consider placing barriers along the track to prevent people from walking across it.

As part of the safety plan, cities are using landscaping to create natural barriers. However, Steere acknowledged that it would be some time before vegetation grows.

He also said red warning lights and signs would be placed at key areas.

"This is an ongoing process," he said. "We're going to adapt as we need to. Our main message is safety."

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Transportation tax survey yields mixed results
by Mike Branom,
Tribune
5.28.2008

Most Arizonans agree the state’s transportation network is overburdened and underfunded, according to a recent study. But public sentiment is split whether revenue raised by a proposed tax increase would solve traffic problems or further damage an already weak economy.

Penny hike in sales tax eyed for transportation

At first glance, the survey contains good news for proponents of a major transportation initiative that will go before voters in November.

Fifty-four percent of those polled said they were likely to approve a statewide one-cent hike in the sales tax, with proceeds financing freeways, trains, buses and other transportation needs across Arizona. An even greater number, 59 percent, believed current funding sources are inadequate to meet the state’s needs over the next 30 years.

Meanwhile, only 20 percent expressed satisfaction with transportation systems in the state.

“Arizonans understand that we are at a crossroads,” said Doug Pruitt, who heads the group backing the measure. “They see the gridlock in our urban areas and our aging and inadequate rural infrastructure, and they understand the dire need to upgrade our transportation system to keep Arizona’s families and economy moving forward.”

Pruitt is chairman of a group called Transportation and Infrastructure Moving Arizona’s Economy, or TIME Coalition. The group crafted the initiative, which would raise an estimated $42 billion over 30 years.

But the survey showed citizens are concerned whether the tax increase will have the desired effect.

Respondents almost were evenly split over whether this was a good time to raise taxes, regardless of whether transportation improvements would help the economy. They were also divided about moving forward with the ballot measure or to conduct more studies on state transportation systems.

Because of those worries, by a 19-point margin (57 percent to 38 percent), most respondents recommended the vote be delayed until 2010.

The survey results also contained unfortunate news for Gov. Janet Napolitano, a major supporter of the measure.

When pollsters asked how transportation improvements should be funded, the most popular answer was to raise fees on developers.

Napolitano recently struck a deal with developers in which she agreed not to tax homebuilders in exchange for their support and $100,000 to kick-start the campaign.

The late March study surveyed 1,224 voters in Maricopa, Pima and Yavapai counties. Its margin of error is 2.9 percentage points.

Results will be presented today to the Maricopa Association of Governments, which funded the study.

 

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Experimental Orbit bus route in Tempe a big hit
Jupiter line city’s second-most used; feared problems didn’t materialize
By MIKE BRANOM
TRIBUNE
5.27.08

CONTACT WRITER: (480) 898-6440 or mbranom@evtrib.com 

Tempe’s newest neighborhood circulator bus line was a hit — in big part because it didn’t hit anyone.

A city study shows the free Orbit service’s Jupiter line, controversial when it started earlier this year, has become the city’s second-most popular route of the five offered.

Nearly 1,500 people per day ride on Jupiter, which connects downtown Tempe and Arizona State University with the residential areas south of campus.

The only line busier was Mercury, which roughly follows Eighth Street eastward from ASU. That route, with its seven-year head start, had an average daily ridership of nearly 2,300.

And despite controversy over residents’ fears of Jupiter buses constantly running along one of Arizona’s busiest bike paths, College Avenue, there were no collisions with bicyclists or pedestrians.

With Jupiter apparently proving itself during the sixmonth trial to residents as convenient and safe, sentiment toward the route has softened. All indicators of public opinion show a strong increase in support, the study said.

City transportation staff and the Transportation Commission are now recommending that the Jupiter line be made permanent.

The study will be presented to the City Council at its June 5 meeting.

When Jupiter made its debut in mid-January, city officials expected the route would be popular. The line passes seven schools and cuts through neighborhoods packed with ASU students and faculty.

As city transportation experts rhetorically asked, why would those people want to pay hundreds of dollars for a parking pass when they can get to campus free?

The city’s prediction of high ridership was correct, as Jupiter drew 157,284 passengers from its start through April. During that time, the route removed an estimated 346,654 automobile miles from Tempe streets.

Before Jupiter’s debut, homeowners spent months trying to kill the service or shift it off their street out of concerns it could endanger pedestrians or bicyclists.

As it turned out, there were only two crashes. Both were with cars, but they were neither on College nor the fault of the Orbit drivers.

Another fear that didn’t materialize was parking problems; the study said the absence of neighborhood complaints and field observations indicate ASU students are not parking on residential streets to catch the Jupiter bus.

The study’s other recommendations included:

• Consider extending Orbit’s operating hours to 1 a.m. to coincide with the schedules of the light-rail and arterial bus systems.

• Increase ridership on the Earth route, which travels through the city north of the Salt River, possibly by directly connecting downtown with the Tempe Marketplace shopping center.

• Examine providing Orbit service to the Tempe Center for the Arts.

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