Phoenix Officials Pushing For Rail Service Connecting Phoenix and Tucson
By Ginny Reese
July 13, 2021
Some Arizona mayors are pushing for the support of an Amtrak service to connect Phoenix and Tucson, reported ABC 15.
The proposed project would bring in three round-trips per day between Phoenix and Tucson. In addition, it would add daily trips to Los Angeles.
The last time a passenger service connected the two cities was in the 1990s.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and Tucson Mayor Regina Romero are both among the mayors in support of the proposal.
The other mayors in support are the mayors of Goodyear, Mesa, Glendale, Oro Valley, South Tucson, Marana, Avondale, Sahuarita, and Chandler. All of them sent a letter to delegation on Tuesday morning asking for support.
The letter states:
"Frequent and reliable passenger rail service will expand economic opportunities and provide important regional connections between our cities and towns."
A press release from the office of Mayor Romero says:
"This would have a $1.9 billion economic impact from one-time capital investments, and a $77.7 million annual impact, according to Amtrak estimates."
The train connection would be a part of Amtrak's Amtrak Connects US project which is quickly expanding all around the country.