Initial streetcar work begins Monday in Tempe
Posted: Thursday, April 5, 2012 1:18 pm
By Garin Groff, Tribune
The first roadway work related to Tempe’s planned streetcar is set to begin Monday in downtown as crews start locating underground utilities.
The activity will result in intermittent traffic restrictions along the 2.6-mile streetcar line through November.
Drivers can expect only a single lane of traffic to close for short periods during the work, Metro outreach coordinator Carla Kahn said.
“We will maintain a lane of traffic in each direction,” Kahn said.
The work will begin on Rio Salado Parkway, between Mill and Ash avenues. After, crews will work on Ash and head south to University Drive. Later, crews will turn to Mill from Rio Salado to the streetcar line’s endpoint at Southern Avenue.
The public can expect to see workers drilling pizza-size holes in roads, going 3-10 feet deep. Crews are identifying the location of utilities that include water pipes, communication lines, gas, fiber optic, irrigation and sewer. Workers will patch the holes afterward and restore the normal flow of traffic.
The activity will occur during daylight hours. Metro will work with Tempe to avoid disrupting traffic during special events.
The utility location is required before engineers can finish the streetcar’s design.
Work on the $130-million streetcar line itself is scheduled to begin in mid-2014. Unlike light rail, the streetcar will share a lane with traffic. Also, the construction is expected to be far less disruptive because the lighter streetcars won’t require Metro to move as many underground utilities before installing the tracks.
Service on the 13-stop system is scheduled to begin in 2016.
