Tucson residents looking for carpool buddies

A number of Tucson residents commute to Phoenix for work on a daily basis and the costs involved are breaking the bank for some. With fuel prices still high there's been a lot of talk about car pooling as a way to save money.

Even for those residents that work in the Tucson area, the commute to and from their jobs can be quite a drive. Some of Tucson's least expensive housing is located in rural areas that require long distance driving to get to local amenities, so driving to work just adds on the financial burden. I found a couple of great sites for Tucsonans looking to carpool locally or outside the city, and from what I've seen there's a lot of Tucson residents that are looking to share commuting expenses. Unfortunately Tucson doesn't utilize carpool lanes so the only advantage is saving money on gas!

Carpoolworld.com

ERideshare.com

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More little signs that Fall has arrived in Tucson

There are several signs that it's Fall in the Tucson area. Besides the gorgeous night time temperatures (low 50's), November brings several clues that better weather (then the rest of the nation anyway) has arrived -

- Out of state license plates are everywhere, so that can only mean the snowbirds have arrived! Snowbirds are what those of us living in Arizona and California call our seasonal residents that move to the area for the winter. Yesterday I saw plates from New York, Wisconsin, Quebec, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan and Oregon all within an afternoon's car ride. The arrival of snowbirds is a sure sign that winter is on it's way!

- No matter where you are in town, right now you'll see cyclists gearing up for the El Tour de Tucson race that takes places here on Saturday, November 17. From August to mid November everyone has got to watch their step to avoid colliding with the packs of cyclists on the roads. I encounter this a lot when I'm running in the morning. Running in Oro Valley you'll come across several cyclists for each block of roadway. Most cyclists are friendly enough if you're courteous to them and get out of their way, but you've got to be careful; I've come across some that scream obscenities at anyone in their path. Must be fatigue and overexertion from training!

- The Javelinas have been attacking our pumpkins again! Javelinas are present throughout the year, but you really begin to see them around Halloween when homeowners leave pumpkins out. Just last night a Javelina knocked over our patio table and broke a potted plant in his (or her) attempt to confiscate the decorative pumpkins we had on the table. It was quite the site as my husband ran out the front door and screamed when he saw the 150 pound creature staring up at him!

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Tucson in top ten cities with most stolen vehicles

Looks like Tucson made the Top Ten list of states with the most stolen cars! The latest survey by the National Insurance Crime Bureau puts Tucson at number ten on the list for 2006 , and Phoenix at number four. Las Vegas actually made the #1 position. The car of choice for local thieves? Surprisingly it's the 1995 Honda Civic...go figure.

Tucson and Phoenix tend to make this list on a regular basis because of our easy access to Interstate 10 and our close proximity to Mexico.

Find out more about national hot spots for car thieves and their vehicles of choice by state

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Another Point About Tucson Traffic

After driving through Tucson this morning I realized I forgot to mention one issue I DO have with traffic in Tucson; drivers not obeying the speed limit. I'll admit that I drive a little fast myself (I stay within the safe 10 mph over the posted limit), but my issue is with those drivers that excessively fast. Just today I was passed by someone going 75 on Interstate 10 when the construction limit is 55mph. And on Houghton Rd, which is only two lanes off I-10, a driver was weaving in and out of busy traffic, passing whoever was in front if him. Tucson has a reputation for having a lot of speeders on the roads. All I ask is that drivers try to remain safe and remember that the reduced speed limits are there for a reason, to save lives.

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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.

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