Pecos Road opponents need broader message

Ahwatukee Foothills News
12-9-05
Editorial

It's encouraging to see residents here organizing public opinion to stop the South Mountain Freeway from being built along Pecos Road.

But while their voices might be large in number, their message needs to broaden if they hope to conquer the formidable opponent that insists on completing Loop 202, whether it be along Pecos Road or a yet unaccepted alternative route.

Who is this foe? It's population growth.

More people mean more cars on existing highways in the Valley, resulting in longer traffic jams and more pressure for additional freeway miles. Without more freeways, the growth needs of companies and businesses and the travel needs of residents will go unmet resulting in more drive time due to congestion, bringing a diminished quality of life and a disincentive to companies considering expansion or relocation.

How serious is this foe?

At last month's East Valley Economic Forum, Lee McPheters, director of the Bank One Economic Outlook Center, identified four unstoppable trends that businesses and government have to reckon with. Population growth made the list.

For the 11th straight year, Arizona has ranked as the second fastest growing state in the nation. Currently about 3.6 million people live in the Greater Phoenix area, and by 2020 that number is expected to reach at least 5.2 million while the statewide population will grow to 8.3 million from about 5.7 million.

Not building the South Mountain Freeway isn't an option, at least not for Ahwatukee Foothills, which can expect to see its current population of about 78,000 residents increase to nearly 120,000 in 2020.

A 2000 study funded by the city of Phoenix predicts an overall 35 percent increase in traffic volume from cars approaching Interstate 10 from the west off of Elliot, Warner and Ray roads as well as Chandler Boulevard.

I-10 is just as bad. At Elliot Road alone, the traffic volume is expected to rise to 187,000 vehicles per day in 2020 compared with 133,000 vehicles in 1999. Without another freeway route, residents here can expect to spend more time in their cars waiting to get onto I-10, and raising pollution levels.

The study shows that a South Mountain Freeway won't completely alleviate traffic jams in Ahwatukee Foothills, but it will lighten the congestion in the village and the Valley. For additional help, the Arizona Department of Transportation is already looking at adding more lanes to I-10, to accommodate increasing demands on freeway infrastructure.

Opponents are raising a much-needed voice in this debate to prevent Pecos Road from becoming the freeway's route, and they deserve to be applauded. But fighting against Pecos Road alone addresses only a portion of the problem. If Pecos Road opponents hope to win the fight and help preserve the overall quality of life and economic vitality of the Valley and Ahwatukee Foothills, they need to broaden their message to address the realistic demands from population growth, and work with their elected leaders to assemble a plan for a completed Loop 202 that is acceptable to all.

Ahwatukee Foothills News editor John Conway can be reached at (480) 898-7910.