Now that work in Uptown is all but finished, the city is focused on other aspects of the ongoing Sedona In Motion transportation master plan.
Every few months the Sedona City Council is updated by staff on the progress of SIM, the latest taking place at a meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 14. One of the more recent changes to the plan is the elimination of slip lanes at the roundabout of State Routes 89A and 179. The Arizona Department of Transportation recently announced that it will not pay for half the funding for this project because in essence, there isn’t enough bang for the buck.
But to say that hardly anyone is going to use the slip lanes — I don’t see how they can come up with that conclusion.
Sedona Vice Mayor John Martinez
“With everything considered, ultimately, it was determined there was not enough benefit to justify the cost of the project,” said Stephen Craver, the city’s engineering supervisor. He also noted that the city did its own due diligence to study the benefit and, in the end, agreed with ADOT’s decision.
Vice Mayor John Martinez, however, disagreed with the state’s decision to withdraw from the project.
“ADOT isn’t even here to see things like that,” Martinez said regarding backups of northbound traffic on Cooks Hill. “We must have to send them a heck of a lot of pictures. But to say that hardly anyone is going to use the slip lanes — I don’t see how they can come up with that conclusion.”
City Engineer Andy Dickey said the plan now is to use some of the resources and staff time that would have been used on slips lanes and focus on how to improve northbound traffic through Uptown.
“We feel that would be a better way to focus our effort,” he said.
Martinez then said, “Perception equals reality and the perception is that traffic backs up on Cook’s Hill and we didn’t do anything about it at the ‘Y’ and that’s what disappoints me very much.”
In addition to the slip lanes, council was given updates on various other portions of SIM including the following:
SIM-1, Uptown Roadway Improvements
■ Construction on the project was initiated on June 3, 2019, and the project was completed on Sept. 14 of this year. Artwork in the roundabouts was installed on Aug. 30. Significant travel time benefits have been measured on southbound State Route 89A. Northbound delay continues to be an issue and staff is monitoring this condition and exploring possible solutions.
SIM-3A Uptown Parking Garage
■ At the Feb. 26, council work session, staff was directed to move forward with the north Forest Road lot location, using a three-level structure with one level subsurface. Property acquisition for these parcels has been completed. Council will be asked to approve a design concept in November.
SIM-4C Pedestrian Crossing at Tlaquepaque
■ The design contract for this project was approved by council on Sept. 24, 2019. Project design and review has progressed from scoping to a 90% design development stage. A permit application has been submitted to ADOT, and the city is awaiting its review and feedback before moving to the next stage of design. Design is expected to be complete by November, with construction starting in early 2021.
SIM-5A Portal, Ranger and Brewer Road Connections
■ The intent of these improvements is to require vehicles that enter the parking lot of Tlaquepaque to exit out to Ranger Road and also provide signage for vehicles coming from the south side of Soldier Wash to use that exit if their destination is West Sedona or Uptown.
Design is nearly complete for the Ranger Road connection through the Tlaquepaque parking lot and the city’s sewer lift station. Construction of these improvements is pending acquisition of the necessary access easement, which is under review by Tlaquepaque’s lawyers.
Staff is also now coordinating with Los Abrigados Resort to provide a connection from its property through the city-owned Ranger Station property to Brewer Road. Design for this project has began in early October and should take several months to complete.
SIM-5B Forest Road Connection
■ Design of the project to connect the west terminus of Forest Road with State Route 89A was recently completed to the 90% progress development stage. This review process is anticipated to be completed by the end of October. The development of property survey mapping/descriptions to support the roadway right-of-way as well as permanent and temporary easements for the planned roadway corridor are in process.
SIM-7/8 Enhanced Transit Service
■ Citizen surveys, including the most recent budget survey, have consistently shown a majority of the community supporting transit, including support for an extension of the existing transportation sales tax beyond the 10-year timeframe in order to pay for transit. A transit manager position was approved through a grant. Interviews for that position will take place this week.
SIM-11 Bicycle & Pedestrian Improvements
■ These projects focus on improvements that can make walking and bicycling safer, more convenient and more comfortable. The improvements are seen as a path toward a more bike-friendly and walkable Sedona.
Currently several projects are in progress including paths along Soldier Pass Road, Dry Creek Road, Sanborn and Thunder Mountain Road, Chapel Road, Navoti Drive to Dry Creek Road, and Piñon Drive.
SIM-12, Traveler Information
■ ADOT has been displaying travel times to Sedona on the I-17 corridor since December 2018. Staff continues to engage ADOT to ensure that the information provided to travelers is meaningful and accomplishes the objectives of the city. The data source for the ADOT signs has been compared with the city’s data and it is accurate within a couple minutes.
