RTA status report – March 2021
The RTA status report for March 2021 shows 887 projects have been completed, including 17 major roadway corridor construction projects.
Transview
Regional planning underway with CAC
Developing a regional transportation plan is no simple task. The Regional Transportation Authority is carrying out a voter-approved plan for 20 years of transportation infrastructure and transit service improvements. Members of the RTA’s Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) are working on a second RTA plan to identify a slate of projects that will continue beyond June … Read more
CAC’s goal: enhance the region’s future
The Regional Transportation Authority’s Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) is tackling challenging questions about regional transportation priorities and will take on that task using the best available information about our future. For example, we know the use of autonomous vehicles is emerging, even if we can’t yet predict the pace of consumer integration. We know vehicles … Read more
RTA’s tax collections fare well during pandemic
The Regional Transportation Authority’s 20-year plan for transportation improvements in the Pima County region relies on a half-cent excise tax for a significant amount of RTA project funding, but in the year since the COVID-19 pandemic began, consumer shopping habits have changed dramatically to help prevent the spread of the virus. Due to the diversity … Read more
We’re always thinking regionally
The 35 named roadway projects in the Regional Transportation Authority plan are located throughout the metro area, but they have a shared characteristic. The projects have regional significance because they provide access to multiple communities in Pima County. RTA improvements help us get to regional destinations with improved safety, reduced congestion and more travel choices. … Read more
What is the RTA and its role in our region?
The Regional Transportation Authority was established in 2004 by the Arizona Legislature as a political subdivision and independent taxing district. As a political subdivision, the RTA is a public body established to develop a regional transportation plan for voter approval. The current multimodal RTA plan was approved by Pima County voters in May 2006 and … Read more
Complexities of transportation funding
People may often wonder why one transportation project starts just as an adjacent project is completed. One might ask, why were the two projects not completed at the same time? The answer is not as simple as one might expect. In the world of roads, transit, safety, bicycle and pedestrian project improvements, regional transportation funding … Read more
How the RTA began
The Regional Transportation Authority, established by the state Legislature in 2004, collects taxes from a special taxing district within Pima County to fund the RTA’s 20-year regional transportation plan. Since voter approval of the RTA’s plan and half-cent tax in 2006 to fund the plan, the RTA has used $1.3 billion in RTA tax revenues … Read more
RTA 2020 – A year of progress
We will remember 2020 for many reasons, and here’s a good one. It was a busy year for RTA projects and activities. Architects, engineers, designers, project managers, contractors and construction crews are working to keep projects moving forward. It was a year of starting and completing many projects identified in the 2006 voter-approved plan, including … Read more
Traffic signal technology is a regional effort
The greater Tucson region is one of the few metropolitan areas of its size to establish a coordinated traffic signal system that can be operated as a comprehensive network. The system is in place, and every jurisdiction in the region is working in partnership to provide seamless traffic signal operations across all boundaries. Pima Association … Read more