New Year, New Policy: WORST FIRST! | January 8, 2020

After efforts from our Road Prioritization Subcommittee, the Transportation Advisory Committee conducted a survey during the autumn season of 2019 requesting opinions regarding what roads to prioritize. It is not an easy decision to make to choose whether to preserve the roads that are in good condition or fix the ones that are already in failing condition. An overwhelming percentage of the public was in favor of fixing the worst roads first, and that’s the new meta for the TAC. Another positive update: Green Valley, along with other unincorporated regions in the county with organized quasi-government will be given the opportunity to present their concerns to the TAC before they make final recommendations to the Board of Supervisors. Check back for more info on that.

For a more detailed briefing, check the minutes on the sidebar from our latest meeting.

Dick Roberts, Chair.

Traffic & Arroyos Report for September 2019:

September 11, 2019 was our monthly meeting. Click here for the minutes (pending committee approval). Amy Cordova, GVC Administrative Assistant, gave a presentation regarding the process that our Service Requests go through to ensure that the community is satisfied with how their requests are responded to. Anyone can view these service requests in the sidebar on this page.

Also, at our September Board of Reps meeting, Carmine DeBonis, Deputy County Administrator, gave a presentation on the county’s new “pay as you go” plan. Click here to view the slideshow presentation. 

Review the fiscal year highlights of the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), the largest transportation funder for our region on an annual basis. The report includes information about revenue collection, RTA finances and RTA plan element highlights as well as the 50+ RTA projects completed during the year. We invite you to learn more about who we are and what we do as the current 20-year plan, funded by a voter-approved excise tax in 2006, enters its final phase and as development of a continuation plan gets underway.

Click HERE to view the report.

From the Chair – April 2019

Roy Dashen is resigning as chair, but intends to remain a member of the committee. There is a need for his replacement.

PCDOT–Lauren– ADOT will be painting the bike symbols on the bike lanes near the overpasses on Duval Mine Road and Esperanza soon.  Pima County may conduct a traffic study regarding expected traffic increase near the new pickleball complex.  Trains crossings will be an issue.  The old lantern style lights on the Esperanza medians will be removed and upgraded, appropriate lighting installed so that pedestrians can be seen at night.

Sheriff’s Office–Lt. Ogden, Doug Kenyon, Commander of SAV– The newspaper will be re-publishing the rules of the road as some GV residents are not driving per those rules.  The stop speeding initiative on the Frontage Road leading to the Hospital is over and appeared to be successful.

RTA Update– Legislation passed for Pima County to impose a .5% increase in sales tax for RTA to repair/maintain/redo Pima County Roads after such an increase is passed by the Board of Supervisors by a majority vote and a yes vote by Pima County voters.    Sun Shuttle stop to service the apartments near Duval Mine Road and La Canada remains an issue.  The parties are still in discussion.

Bicycle Committee– The Tour de Tucson is still up in the air.  The corporate owners are looking for someone to run it this year.  The Committee is still advocating for an extension of  The Loop and junction with the Anza Trail.

RTA Citizens’ Advisory Committee–Chuck Dorr–Public forums are being conducted on where money comes from and where it goes on transit issues.  Most of the money comes from RTA.  The CAC is beginning to focus on projects in transportation area after 2026 when the present projects are completed/sunsetted–bike use, safety issues, what traffic will Camino Del Sol experience as it can’t really become a 4 lane road–need to figure out projects to help Green Valley in the future.  Unincorporated areas are underrepresented on the RTA.  The T & A Committee needs to start considering this issue.

Dick Roberts– The T & A, and probably GVC as a whole, needs a Future Committee that will consider such issues as what  I-11 construction and I-19 changes will mean to the community, impacts/changes in infrastructure in the future. The FC should be multi-focus and involve all aspects of the community.  GVC needs to address this with the Board of Representatives and the community to get volunteers plus get someone from the Technical Management Committee.

COMMITTEE INFORMATION

The Traffic & Arroyos Committee works with community members to identify unsafe situations and problems relating to roads and arroyos.  Although the maintenance of roads and arroyos is the responsibility of Pima County and the State of Arizona, the Committee works closely with both governmental agencies to identify areas of need before they become major problems, recommend and prioritize actions, as necessary, and track and evaluate the progress of new construction and maintenance projects.

Traffic Light? 

Roundabout? 

Status Quo?

These are the options currently being discussed by the residents of the Green Valley community.  Almost all of the residents in Green Valley and the surrounding area are in agreement that traffic moving through the intersection at Continental and Whitehouse Canyon roads experience delays in the morning and afternoon “rush” hours.  What is unclear is what can be done to help the situation.

While it may appear that the overall character of the Green Valley community would seem to make the idea of “rush” hours an oxymoron, we do have our share of commuters, for example, school buses, parents and teenagers driving to school, and people in Green Valley and Sahuarita who work nearby.

For these reasons, the issue has been the foremost topic at recent Traffic & Arroyos Committee meetings, which has sponsored a number of informational workshops where the Pima County DOR Traffic Engineering Division has discussed the economic feasibility of different options and presented results of their study of traffic flowing through the intersection.  Pima County is leaving it up to the Green Valley community to make their recommendation before moving forward.

Early this year, the Green Valley Council sponsored a Community Forum, held on February 4, 2016, from 2:00 – 4:00 PM in the GVR East Center in Green Valley.  The Forum was held to ensure that the Council’s Board of Representatives were aware of the issues involved in improving traffic flow at the intersection of Continental and Whitehouse Canyon roads.  Over 100 residents and representatives of HOAs and the School District attended the meeting to hear presentations by Robert Lane and Hannah Olsen, from the Traffic Engineering Division, Pima County DOT, and from the Vice-President of La Posada, Mark Dugan.  The members of the audience were given the opportunity to voice their opinions after the speakers finished their presentations.  Because of the level of controversy surrounding the two most talked about proposals—a roundabout or a traffic light—a task force has been appointed by the GVC Executive Board to review all of the concerns that have been voiced by the community.  The Chair of the task force is Dick Roberts, who is in the process of identifying members of the task force for a meeting in March.  The Traffic & Arroyo Committee and the Executive Board of the Green Valley Council are not rushing toward a recommendation nor is Pima County pushing for one.  The goal of the task force will be to try to reach a consensus on the best course of action.  In the meantime, the task force will look into short term solutions, and La Posada has opened their North Gate into the property to ease traffic congestion.

Road Conditions

The issues of roads most talked about by Green Valley residents is the condition of our roads.  The issue is one not only of safety for passengers and less wear and tear on our vehicles, but of the lack of an important piece of infrastructure that is necessary to bring businesses and newcomers to Green Valley.  At the meeting of the Pima County Board of Supervisors on February 16, 2016, President Don Weaver pledged that the Green Valley Council would help in any way it could to help improve the roads in Pima County and Green Valley.

The Green Valley Council is ready to explore all options with Pima County, three of which are under consideration:

1. Increase the gasoline tax with a provision that the state would pass the full amount back to the cities and counties.
2. Increase the sales tax for Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) funding by ½ cent with the provision that these monies could be used for pavement preservation.
3. Create tax districts for the purpose of road preservation in Green Valley.

Options 1 and 2 would require legislative approval by the state legislators.  Option No. 1 could be addressed this year if either the Senate President or the Speaker of the House agrees to add this item to the legislative agenda.  Option No. 3 requires approval by the Pima county Board of Supervisors.  If the Supervisors agree, the residents of the proposed tax district would be asked to vote their approval.  The Roads to Recovery brochure explains the funding for Pima County road repair, and the Green Valley Council’s listing of County and private roads in the subdivisions in Green Valley provides background information on the nature and scope of this issue.

Traffic Reports

Often traffic analyses are undertaken for new developments, including the intersection at Continental and Whitehouse Canyon roads and the proposed Kino Landing project.  The Committee will post these reports as they are made available.

Sharing Our Roads
Green Valley Roads are lined with bike paths and the Committee coordinates with the bicyclists on issues of concern.  Golf carts also share bicycle lanes and vehicle lanes depending on the width of the bike lane.  Golf carts wider than the lanes must use the vehicle lanes.  Arizona state law considers golf carts to be motor vehicles, which require them to be registered and insured (i.e., liability insurance—minimum $15,000 in the case of bodily injury and $10,000 for damage to property.

Public Transportation

Green Valley also assists their residents in getting around the area and traveling between Tucson and Green Valley.  “Need-a-Ride?” lists local availability, and the “Sun Shuttle,” part of the greater Tucson transportation regional system also provides within area and longer distance commutes.

Traffic Reports

Often traffic analyses are undertaken for new developments, including the intersection at Continental and Whitehouse Canyon roads and the proposed Kino Landing project.  The Committee will post these reports as they are made available.