Understanding Phoenix Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)
Dispelling the myths you might have heard about BRT and what you need to know!
Phoenix BRT Team
February 28, 2025
10
| Myth | Fact |
| The City has completed the design of the 35th Avenue BRT Corridor. | The design process has not started. Currently, community feedback is being sought on the options for how BRT will operate in the roadway (dedicated side-running or center-running). Once that decision is made, design will begin. The City will conduct community outreach and engagement throughout the design process and beyond. |
| The City has determined the lane configuration for the 35th Avenue corridor. | The City has not determined the lane configuration (i.e., how BRT will operate/fit within the roadway). Lane configurations will be evaluated throughout 2025, including seeking community and business input on the options. This will continue to be refined in the design phase later this year. |
| BRT project construction will be starting construction soon. | Construction is not expected to begin until 2028. |
| The City has identified right-of-way acquisitions and will be taking properties using eminent domain. | The project’s design has not started, and right-of-way acquisitions have not been identified. As decisions are made about how BRT will operate in the roadway, the project team will begin project designs that will identify potential right-of-way impacts. As with any public infrastructure project, the city will follow a detailed process for communication and coordination with affected properties once they are determined. The project team and the city will work closely with property owners to mitigate or limit impacts as much as possible. |
| The current bus system can support current and future needs without adding bus rapid transit. | The current bus system plays an important role in the overall transportation system, but like any other single element of that system, it cannot meet all current and future transportation needs. Year-over-year bus ridership continues increasing throughout the region. BRT also introduces infrastructure improvements that allow all traffic to flow throughout the corridor. |
| This project would eliminate left turns throughout the corridor. | If the project is designed with side-running BRT, left turns would be maintained throughout the corridor. If the project is designed with center-running BRT, left turns will be maintained at all signalized intersections along the corridor. |
| There is not high ridership on the 35th Avenue bus route today. No one is riding the bus. | Transit ridership on 35th Avenue is amongst the highest in the region. Current ridership data shows the route carrying almost 3,300 passengers per weekday (January 2025 data). |
| Businesses have not been notified of this project. | There have been multiple rounds of outreach as a part of the Phoenix BRT program, which included notification to community members, business owners, and transit riders. All outreach has included business notifications. In addition to the information provided above, in 2023 the project team individually canvassed all businesses along the project corridor and connected with 688 of them. This included a business-specific survey, general information sharing about the project, and most importantly, adding their information to our contact database and providing website and contact information so those businesses could stay engaged and have access to current information. |
Supporting details:
Introductory Outreach: February - December 2020
- Over 1,200 people engaged, 600 comments and questions addressed
- Social media campaigns
- 4,581 page views and 766 pageviews on the online meeting website
- Nine (9) community groups connecting with over 280 stakeholders
- Village Planning Committee Meetings – presented 15 times to over 400 community/committee members
- 474 survey responses
Phase I: October – December 2022
- Community newsletters / Social media campaigns
- Direct emails to 15 village planning committees, eight (8) Council Districts and Mayor’s Office, 50 technical advisory and executive leadership committee members, 55 neighborhood and business organizations
- Bus posters on 68 bus shelters, 518 buses, eight (8) light rail station kiosks, and four (4) transit centers
- 2,006 page views on MeetPhoenixBRT.com
- 340 survey responses
Phase II: February – June 2023
- Two (2) English and two (2) Spanish billboards along the corridor
- Digital and print advertising - Arizona Republic, La Voz, Prensa Arizona, Contacto Total, Twitter, Facebook, Nextdoor, Spanish radio
- Direct emails to 106 stakeholders and email blasts to 4,780 stakeholders
- Blog posts with 985 page views
- Bus posters on 68 bus shelters, 518 buses, eight (8) light rail station kiosks, and four (4) transit centers
- 4,384 pageviews and 2,440 site visitors on MeetPhoenixBRT.com
- 1,682 page views on the online meeting and 8,057 pageviews on the Phoenix.gov/BRT website
- Hand-delivered fliers (2,340 businesses, 9,026 residents) within a ¼ mile of the corridor
- Press release with 222 page views
- Social media campaigns
- Variable message boards at each public meeting location
- 502 survey responses
Phase III: Currently conducting outreach from February – April 2025
- Direct mail to residents/businesses within a ¼ mile of the corridor, offsite property owners
- Doorhangers – all businesses within 500 feet of the corridor
- Transit posters, bus stop posters, light rail kiosk posters
- Email blasts – targeting active stakeholders and those who live and work on the corridor
- Direct emails – City departments, agency stakeholders, Mayor and Council offices
- Blog posts and web updates
- Social media campaigns – Facebook, X, and Nextdoor
- Press release – general public, media, agency partners, and city departments
- Targeted digital ads and radio ads – to residents/businesses and Spanish-speaking community
- Water bill inserts – Phoenix Water customers
- Print Ads - through La Voz and Contacto Total