Is Tucson Traffic Really That Bad?

According to a study done by the Texas Transportation Institute, Tucson traffic is getting worse faster then other cities of similar size. The 2007 Urban Mobility Study reported that the average American living in a mid size city like Tucson spent 28 hours in traffic in 2005, while Tucsonans spent 42 hours in traffic. According to this study, Tucson is ranked the "25th most-congested urban area" among the 85 areas included in this report. Phoenix was ranked 15th, with drivers being tied up in traffic about 48 hours.

Living in Tucson for over 15 years, I driven thru about every nook and cranny of the city and never noticed any real traffic congestion. I will admit that traffic has increased since I first made my home here, but Tucson traffic does have it's seasons. During the summer our roads are less congested because U of A students have gone home, and snowbirds (that's what we call our seasonal residents) are back enjoying cooler summer temperatures at their primary homes. Once we move into the Fall months, traffic picks up as students begin school again and snowbirds flock to the SW to keep warm.

Traffic can become congested where road construction is going on, but I've found that the city does a pretty good job with keeping the roads running smoothly in those areas. The construction project on I-10 will prevent drivers from entering or exiting the freeway on six main ramps thru downtown Tucson for the next 2 1/2 years, but I've found it's pretty manageable. There are several sites that offer live video of the traffic on I-10, and other sites provide up to date info about what's going to happen next. The majority of businesses in this area expected to lose clientele due to closures but were surprised at the increase in business due to more traffic on the frontage roads. Nice to hear that this ongoing project hasn't caused any significant problems for most.

There are some areas that do experience high traffic volume, and most this occurs during rush hour. Central Tucson sees a lot of backups and rush hour traffic can be a nightmare. The intersection of Ina and Oracle in NW Tucson creates a lot of congestion between 3:30pm and 5:30pm due to drivers heading home to Oro Valley.

Closer to home I'd like to note that the road widening project on First Ave leading up to Oro Valley has been a piece of cake. Since First Ave is a main thoroughfare up to Oro Valley, and there has been only one lane heading in each direction, I thought that traffic would be backed up for the majority of the project. I must say though that I can count the number of times on one hand that I was stopped, and that was due to drivers making a left turn on Naranja. Two new intersections, two extra lanes and turn lanes have been added, so as they finish up the final paving this week, everything is looking great. I might add they've done a great job with the landscape too. I'm sure that many other Oro Valley residents are excited to break in this new roadway. The biggest problem will be remembering that now we can drive the normal speed limit rather then the 25MPH for construction zones.

Overall I've seen no significant problems with traffic in Tucson. Yes it's increasing, but that's happening everywhere; with growth comes traffic. If you've ever been to Phoenix, traffic in Tucson is a walk in the park. Many of my past clients say that one of the reasons they chose Tucson is because there wasn't a lot of traffic. Some compared Phoenix traffic to LA and said "No Thanks"! Tucson is very spread out and it can take some time to get where you're going, but when you surrounded by gorgeous mountains it makes the drive pretty easy on the eyes.