Starting May 20, residents can begin riding Valley Metro’s Tempe Streetcar line. Service will be free for the first year.
Streetcar travels on Mill and Ash avenues from Rio Salado Parkway and Marina Heights to Dorsey Lane and Apache Boulevard and differs from light rail in that it shares the roadway with vehicle traffic. Vehicles are also smaller, with a capacity of 125 people, and travel as a single car. Streetcars will arrive at stops every 15-20 minutes.
The three-mile streetcar route has two connections to light rail, has 14 sheltered stops with public art and landscaping and is ADA and bike accessible.
Another touted feature of the streetcar service is its off-wire capability on Mill Avenue in downtown Tempe. The hybrid battery-powered off-wire feature--the first in the Valley Metro fleet--helps preserve the natural canopy of trees that have long been identified with the area.
Construction of the Tempe Streetcar project began in 2018. It will serve the Tempe ASU campus, downtown Tempe, Gammage Auditorium, Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe Beach Park and connect to many small businesses and neighborhoods.
Streetcar service is a regional, public transportation service built with federal grants, regional funding from Proposition 400 and local public-private partnerships. Operations are entirely funded by the city of Tempe. Expansion of the streetcar may include future stops at Tempe Marketplace, Sloan Park, Riverview Park, Mesa Asian District and Mesa Community College.
