Title
Better Utilizing Infrastructure Leveraging Development 2020 Grant Award - 35th Avenue Safety Corridor Project
Description
This report provides an update to the Transportation, Infrastructure and Innovation Subcommittee on the U.S. Department of Transportation Better Utilizing Infrastructure Leveraging Development (BUILD) 2020 Grant Award. Phoenix was awarded nearly $17.5 million to make safety and technology improvements to the 35th Avenue corridor between Interstate 10 (I-10) and Camelback Road.
THIS ITEM IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY.
Report
Summary
The BUILD grant is an extremely competitive process. Receiving a national grant to improve multimodal safety on one of Phoenix’s busiest roadways by implementing innovative technology is an exciting opportunity for the City of Phoenix. The Project area, 35th Avenue between I-10 and Camelback Road, serves students and families that walk, bike and use transit daily.
This highly utilized 3.2-mile section of roadway has between 24,000 and 35,000 vehicles per day. The 35th Avenue corridor currently serves about 250 small businesses and 8,000 employees across a wide spectrum of business sectors, including manufacturing and distribution. It is also one of the City's highest transit ridership areas with an average of 5,200 daily riders. Diverse land uses across the 35th Avenue corridor include multi-family residential, commercial and industrial developments, multiple K-12 schools, two community parks and the campus of Grand Canyon University.
Receiving this BUILD grant award leverages and supports the City’s Transportation 2050 (T2050) Plan since this portion of 35th Avenue has been identified as a T2050 Safety Corridor and is also a major public transit corridor. Between I-10 and Camelback Road, 35th Avenue has been identified as a pedestrian safety ‘hot spot’ where a higher number of pedestrian-related collisions and injuries have occurred in recent years. Project improvements will include increased lighting, signalized mid-block crossings and raised medians, which will contribute to overall safety, especially for pedestrians.
Further, with the population of residents adjacent to the 35th Avenue corridor being predominantly young (33 percent of the population is under the age of 18) and likely to attend one of the 10 K-12 schools in the corridor, the project improvements will also address providing safe access to schools in the area.
The BUILD grant requires a local match of $7.5 million, which the City will fund using a combination of T2050 revenues and Arizona Highway User Revenue Funds (HURF). The initial grant award triggers a series of next steps, including environmental surveys and pre-design activities. Design of the project is anticipated to start in spring 2021, with construction anticipated to start in late 2022 with a goal of completing construction in early 2025.
35th Avenue Safety Corridor Project Improvements
The 35th Avenue Safety Corridor Project consists of improvements that advance safety, mobility and economic development in the project area. A visual overview is included in Attachment A. Targeted improvements include:
- Installing three new pedestrian hybrid beacons (illuminated pedestrian-activated signals) along 35th Avenue at or near the Coronado Road, Grand Canal Multi-Use Path and Turney Avenue intersections to increase mid-block pedestrian crossing opportunities;
- Installing raised medians at various locations throughout the project corridor to provide greater vehicle separation and a safe refuge to pedestrians without restricting existing traffic movements;
- Rebuilding nine signalized intersections to modern standards that allow for support of new traffic technologies and safer operations;
- Installing LED street lighting along the west side of 35th Avenue, completing dual-sided lighting throughout the corridor and improving safety for drivers and pedestrians;
- Milling and overlaying the pavement between McDowell Road and Camelback Road to provide a smooth driving surface and reduce future maintenance needs;
- Installing broadband fiber optic cable to improve the corridor’s capacity for data sharing and allowing for the future integration of autonomous and innovative technologies; and
- Updating traffic signal programming to improve roadway efficiency. Traffic signal optimization can reduce travel times by nearly 20 percent, potentially saving 90,000 hours for commuters annually.
Financial Impact
The BUILD grant requires a local match of $7.5 million, which the City will fund using T2050 revenues and HURF.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
The City Council authorized the application for and acceptance of the ‘Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development’ Grant (Ordinance S-46531) on April 15, 2020.
Location
35th Avenue between I-10 and Camelback Road
Council Districts: 4 and 5
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Mario Paniagua and the Street Transportation Department.