Road Runner: County floats Snyder bridge idea again

In May, the Pima County Board of Supervisors approved a rezoning for 130 three-bedroom “luxury casitas” along North Sabino Canyon Road between East River and Cloud roads, despite objections from some residents in the area.

A common complaint among those residents was the increased congestion the development would bring to the area, particularly along Sabino Canyon Road.

The complaints prompted the Pima County Department of Transportation, at the request of County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry, to revisit the idea of building a bridge across Sabino Creek at East Snyder Road.

County officials believe a bridge across Sabino Creek would alleviate traffic along Sabino Canyon Road, as well as Tanque Verde Road, which provides the only access from Sabino Canyon to the Tanque Verde area and Mount Lemmon.

Officials have floated the idea since the early 1960s, when the Snyder Road alignment was added to the County Major Streets and Routes plan.

In 1981, the county department of transportation studied four potential crossing locations at Sabino Creek: Sunrise Drive, Ocotillo Drive, Snyder Road and Cloud Road, according to county documents.

Ocotillo and Cloud were eliminated because there weren’t any good connection points on the other side of the creek.

Sunrise was once a possibility, with an extension to Houghton Road, and was even included as a major route on the Pima Association of Governments 1986 Regional Transportation Plan.

However, there was no commitment to reserve right-of-way for the route, and development in the area eventually eliminated Sunrise as a possibility.

The county initiated another study, focused on the Snyder Road alignment, in 1998.

County officials enlisted the help of four consultants with different specialties, who created a design concept report and conducted an environmental assessment, traffic study, a public opinion survey and public meetings.

At the time, the study recommended a 1,200-foot long bridge on Snyder that would span the entire floodplain, with a recommended speed of 40 mph.

The bridge was projected to carry 16,000 vehicles a day and decrease traffic on Sabino Canyon Road, Tanque Verde Road and Catalina Highway by 10,000 vehicles.

And opposition to the bridge was evenly split.

So where do we stand in 2014?

The most recent study found 5,000 to 7,000 vehicles per day would cross the new bridge and traffic would increase overall to 15,000 vehicles per day on Snyder Road east of Sabino Canyon Road. The number would increase to 11,000 vehicles per day across the bridge, with 18,000 vehicles per day east of Sabino Canyon once more motorists discovered the bridge. The analysis showed traffic on Sabino Canyon Road south of Snyder Road would decrease by 5,000 vehicles per day and 6,000 vehicles per day on Tanque Verde.

A new bridge would require wider shoulders and space for pedestrians, which wasn’t part of the 1998 design. Overall, there are still potential benefits to building a bridge and providing another access point east of Sabino Creek.

But, like the previous studies, this analysis won’t result in any action in the foreseeable future.

The county department of transportation does not have the $15 million it would likely cost to build the bridge.

If the county had the money, it would still have to consider the negative impact of increased traffic on Snyder Road, as well as the likely opposition to the project from area residents.

Still, Huckelberry said in a memo this project would be a “high priority” in any future transportation initiatives.

There is no timeline for when that initiative will be met, but it’s possible the county’s next study of Snyder Road could include a plan of action.