A national report shows Tucson's roads are improving. The latest urban roads report from TRIP, a national transportation research group, finds Tucson is now in the middle among major American cities when it comes to road conditions.
The report found that of the 70 cities with populations over half a million, Tucson came in at 35th. That is a major improvement compared to four years ago, when the same report ranked Tucson's major roads the fifth-worst in the country. Officials say Tucson's progress is mostly due to city and county programs that have improved conditions of many high-volume roads.
The study, which focuses only on major roads, says 30% of our roads considered are in poor condition, down from 32 last year. This year, Tucson came in just ahead of Toledo, Ohio and a couple of cities in the California bay area. Phoenix came in 13th, with a reported 17 percent of major roads in poor shape.
Meanwhile, to continue road improvement efforts, the city is asking voters to consider a proposed half-cent city sales tax. Proposition 101 would allocate $100 million for road repairs.
While the study praises Tucson for it's improvements on major roads, it does not apply to residential or local streets, which other studies have deemed to be in poor condition.
Read the entire report here.
