Arizona State and Local Government Documents Collection

Project Summary

Passing and climbing lanes provide additional lanes for vehicles to safely pass other vehicles while maintaining speeds. Implementing passing and climbing lane projects provides traffic operational and safety benefits at a cost that is far less than fully widening a highway. In an effort to enhance safety and mobility on Arizona's roadways, the Arizona Department of Transportation is currently updating the 2003 Passing and Climbing Lanes Prioritization Study. This update intends to further refine the identification and prioritization methodology previously utilized and to develop a prioritized list of candidate locations that would provide the most benefit to the traveling public.
Study Objectives

    Review previous studies and research current best practices.
    Analyze the safety and performance benefits of passing/climbing lanes constructed since the previous study.
    Develop a revised methodology and ranking criteria.
    Obtain feedback from ADOT District Engineers and other stakeholders, such as rural COGs and MPOs.
    Develop a new prioritized list of candidate passing/climbing lane projects. 
 

For those interested in one of the most extreme state tax and expenditure limitations, TABOR – Colorado’s initiative that limits the funding of most expenditures to annual revenue growth restrained by the sum of annual population growth and inflation rates – would seem to be exactly the right choice. To some, the initiative simply limits government to spend within its means. However, the analysis in this paper reveals that, true to the language in the 1992 Colorado initiative, TABOR limits government growth, and over time the public sector, as a share of the overall economy, declines sharply – crowding out opportunities for investments in strategic initiatives or opportunities for tax reform that may be popular with large voter constituencies or the business community. Advocates point out that provisions in TABOR do allow for voter overrides, but these are costly in both time and money, and until the overrides take place, government is
hamstrung. A simpler, more efficient alternative would be to elect fiscally conservative legislators and hold them accountable for prudent fiscal decisions that strike the right balance between a tax base conductive to economic growth and strategic investments that provide public sector infrastructure, nurturing the business climate and promoting the health and well-being of the citizenry. The paper first outlines the TABOR amendment in Colorado and examines its fiscal consequences for that state. It then examines the potential impact of a TABOR in Arizona.

The research for this report was conducted in two phases. The first phase analyzed the change in national job quality using multiple datasets, going back as far as 1970. In addition, the level and change in job quality was estimated for one state (Arizona). Some inconsistencies in the measurement of job quality exist across datasets. Complete results of this analysis, with a strong focus on Arizona data, are available in the report "Job Quality in Arizona". The second phase analyzed data for all states but was limited to two datasets, one presenting industrial data, the other occupational data. Because of the limited availability of state data by occupation, the time period analyzed was restricted to the years 2000 and 2003. The level of job quality in 2003 and the change between 2000 and 2003 are presented. The findings of the second phase, initially reported in "Job Quality in Arizona Compared to All States", are included in the current report, excluding detail provided for Arizona in the original report. Additional national and regional analyses are included in the current report.

The best way to evaluate job quality would be to analyze a dataset that presents both occupational and industrial data, but the only dataset of this nature available by state comes from the decennial census. It is severely limited by small sample size, the latest data are for 1999, and the 1999 data are not consistent with the 1989 data. Thus, the initial work by the Seidman Institute on job quality ("Job Quality in Arizona", March 2005, presented data on Arizona job quality from several sources of either industrial or occupational data. "Job Quality in Arizona Compared to All States" is an extension of the March 2005 report. Arizona’s job quality in the latest year and its change over time is compared to the national average and is ranked among the 51 “states” (including the District of Columbia).

Located in northwest Arizona, the Hualapai Indian Reservation is comprised of five separate areas totaling more than 1 million acres and includes portions of the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon. The reservation has a tribal enrollment of approximately 2,269 persons, and nearly half of the enrolled members reside in Peach Springs. Located along Historic Route 66, Peach Springs is the capital of the Hualapai Nation and home to the Peach Springs School District, tourist facilities and numerous tribal government facilities. The Hualapai Indian Tribe maintains approximately 50 miles of paved roadways in various conditions and more than 600 miles of unpaved roadways. Major routes within the study area include State Route 66, Diamond Bar Road, Diamond Creek Road, Indian Route 18 and Buck and Doe Road.

Located along the Colorado River, the Grand Canyon and Historic Route 66, tourism is the leading economic generator for the Hualapai Indian Tribe. Opened in 2007, the Grand Canyon Skywalk received approximately 800,000 visitors last year and Hualapai tribal staff have estimated a 20 percent increase in tourists if roadway improvements are made to Diamond Bar Road. To encourage additional tourism and development, it is vital that the tribe's multimodal transportation infrastructure is capable of supporting new economic endeavors.

With the ultimate goal of enhancing safety, accessibility, mobility and economic growth, the primary purpose of this study will be to develop a multimodal Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) to serve as a guiding document for the tribe to implement transportation improvements. The study will identify current and future transportation deficiencies; provide transportation improvement recommendations over the next five-, 10- and 20-year horizon periods; identify potential funding sources; and provide the tribe with a phased transportation implementation plan.

The study will accomplish these goals:

    Conduct a comprehensive evaluation of major roadways within the Hualapai Indian Reservation.
    Evaluate vehicular traffic congestion and circulation issues.
    Identify pedestrian and bicycle needs.
    Develop roadway design standards.
    Identify methods to preserve existing transportation infrastructure.
    Identify specific improvement strategies to address the needs of the study area.
    Prepare a maintenance plan.
    Develop a three-phased Improvement Plan that promotes safety and mobility, supports economic development and improves community livability.

The objective of the Verde Valley Master Transportation Study (VVMTS) is to provide the participating members of the Verde Valley Transportation Planning Organization (VVTPO) an update on the performance of the major roads in their respective jurisdictions and provide an implementation planning tool for programming of funds for improvement of their transportation system. This regional collaboration will also provide a performance measure of how the transportation system as a whole is operating in the Verde Valley.