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Leave us out while solving Tucson traffic issues
Nothing is more annoying than having a neighbor that can't solve his own problems and tries to make them yours. And that is exactly what Cochise County has.
For years, Tucson and its surrounding unincorporated suburbs have refused to deal with the growing traffic problem in the city. Every time a road improvement initiative went to the voters - until this past November - the mantra of Tucsonans has been, "We're not Phoenix." Roughly translated, that means, "We don't like freeways." As a result, the exploding population of Tucson has been funneled onto surface streets and an increasingly overburdened Interstate 10. Because the interstate passes through Tucson, the city accidentally acquired a freeway, like it or not.
The state is now preparing to widen I-10 as it passes through the city. The result will be that the road will be closed for the better part of three years, and when it's all over, it will still be overburdened.
Which brings us to that neighborly problem. Si Schorr, who sits on the ADOT board, believes that Tucson needs an I-10 bypass. And where does he think it ought to be built? Not in Tucson. Being a realist, he knows that would never fly. So let's build it in rural Cochise County. Tucson wouldn't be in this shape and I-10 wouldn't be so overburdened if the city and Pima County had dealt with the traffic problem in a timely manner as Maricopa County did. But they couldn't get their voters to agree, so presumably they hope the rural residents of northern Cochise County will be more manageable.
Mr. Schorr hasn't given much thought to the San Pedro riparian area, which is one suggestion for where to put this freeway. That would devastate a pristine area, one of the few remaining in southern Arizona. He also seems unconcerned about the impact on cities like Benson and Willcox that might lose the commerce I-10 currently brings to them. And the ranchers and land owners of Cochise County who would lose their property to the state for road construction are of little interest as well. If Cochise County voters thought Smith Ranch would threaten their rural way of life, try routing a six-lane interstate through a wilderness area
We hope Cochise County will vigorously oppose any such idea. If Pima County is having a problem, Pima County ought to solve it. Take the bypass south and west of the city if it's that critical, but leave us alone. Part of the advantage of living in Cochise County is that we don't have Pima County's issues. Let's not allow them to be imposed on us.
For years, Tucson and its surrounding unincorporated suburbs have refused to deal with the growing traffic problem in the city. Every time a road improvement initiative went to the voters - until this past November - the mantra of Tucsonans has been, "We're not Phoenix." Roughly translated, that means, "We don't like freeways." As a result, the exploding population of Tucson has been funneled onto surface streets and an increasingly overburdened Interstate 10. Because the interstate passes through Tucson, the city accidentally acquired a freeway, like it or not.
The state is now preparing to widen I-10 as it passes through the city. The result will be that the road will be closed for the better part of three years, and when it's all over, it will still be overburdened.
Which brings us to that neighborly problem. Si Schorr, who sits on the ADOT board, believes that Tucson needs an I-10 bypass. And where does he think it ought to be built? Not in Tucson. Being a realist, he knows that would never fly. So let's build it in rural Cochise County. Tucson wouldn't be in this shape and I-10 wouldn't be so overburdened if the city and Pima County had dealt with the traffic problem in a timely manner as Maricopa County did. But they couldn't get their voters to agree, so presumably they hope the rural residents of northern Cochise County will be more manageable.
Mr. Schorr hasn't given much thought to the San Pedro riparian area, which is one suggestion for where to put this freeway. That would devastate a pristine area, one of the few remaining in southern Arizona. He also seems unconcerned about the impact on cities like Benson and Willcox that might lose the commerce I-10 currently brings to them. And the ranchers and land owners of Cochise County who would lose their property to the state for road construction are of little interest as well. If Cochise County voters thought Smith Ranch would threaten their rural way of life, try routing a six-lane interstate through a wilderness area
We hope Cochise County will vigorously oppose any such idea. If Pima County is having a problem, Pima County ought to solve it. Take the bypass south and west of the city if it's that critical, but leave us alone. Part of the advantage of living in Cochise County is that we don't have Pima County's issues. Let's not allow them to be imposed on us.
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