MAG News

When the National Football League was in town for the Big Game, things looked even bigger and better than they did in 2015, the last time the championship was played in Glendale.

In the past eight years, the Valley’s population has added more than 500,000 people, growing from about 4 million to just over 4.5 million, an increase of 13 percent. We also have seen the addition of 444,000 new jobs.

Big Game, big growth

It’s been a bit more than eight years since Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid has been in town, but he has plenty of ties to Arizona and the region. Reid was a coach at Northern Arizona University in 1986, and his wife’s family is from the Valley. During an interview with news outlets on Media Day, Reid commented on how far the region’s transportation system has come.

“The Valley has grown. I still remember driving from Los Angeles, and I-10 stopped right where the stadium is, and you would get off and drive through a bunch of fields there to get to Glendale,” recalled Reid. “It’s grown. I mean, has grown and grown and grown. Tribute to the politicians in the city who have done a nice job putting it together.”

The game plan

Regional transportation progress is the result of nearly 40 years of transportation investment made by the region through a dedicated half-cent sales tax for transportation, first passed by Maricopa County voters in 1985 and approved again in 2004. The current program, known as Proposition 400, generates more than half of the region’s funding to build projects included in the Regional Transportation Plan.

Under Proposition 400, Valley residents have seen more than 300 miles of new freeways, 252 miles of street projects, and millions of additional miles of bus service since its implementation in 2005, according to the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG).

Moving the ball

In the eight years since the Big Game was last played in Glendale, the region has delivered a number of major transportation projects, including opening of the 22-mile Loop 202 (South Mountain Freeway), construction of the Loop 303 (Estrella Freeway), widening of Loop 101 (Pima Freeway), completion of the Northwest Extension of the light rail, launch of streetcar in Tempe, and completion of Northern Parkway to 111th Avenue, just to name a few.

Prop 400 transportation projects completed 2015-Present

Delay of game

Proposition 400 funding will expire in December 2025. In June 2021, the MAG Regional Council unanimously approved a new Regional Strategic Transportation Infrastructure Investment Plan. The plan, which involved significant public and stakeholder input, continues momentum in delivering multimodal investments across the region, including freeway improvements and high-capacity transit expansion.

With broad support last year, the Legislature passed vital legislation that would have placed a funding initiative before Maricopa County voters in 2023, but was unfortunately vetoed by then-Governor Doug Ducey.

MAG Chair and Avondale Mayor Kenn Weise said the current Proposition 400 progress must be built upon if the region is to remain an ideal place to live, work and play.

“The projects completed under Proposition 400 are improving the lives of our residents every day, including better access to work, school, grocery stores, medical appointments and recreation,” said Mayor Weise.

Remaining the “host to beat”

“Our region is the go-to home for high-quality, high-paying jobs, the result of decades of leadership commitment from local elected officials,” said Mayor Weise. “We look forward to working in partnership with the Legislature and the Governor’s Office to deliver enabling legislation this year to continue our transportation progress, so we will continue to be the host to beat for international events.”