Arizona Traffic Seems Bad To Locals

Gridlock continues to plague Valley commuters, with the average motorist spending 49 hours stuck in traffic during 2003, according to the annual Urban Mobility Report from the Texas Transportation Institute. Locals are complaining, but people moving here or visiting from other large metropolitan areas don't feel the same. Most saying that the traffic here is quite bearable, especially with the nice, clean roadways we all enjoy here in the Valley of the Sun!

Despite the area's rapid growth, the travel delays stayed about the same compared to previous years. This points to a well managed roadway system in Central Arizona. Overall, Phoenix ranked 18th among all urban areas, and 12th among the 13 largest metropolitan areas. While there is hope with ADOT soon embarking on the first phase of a 20-year Maricopa County Regional Transportation Plan approved by voters in November (Prop 400), the reality is that with all the projected growth, travel times will increase.