YMPO pushes for widening U.S. 95

Four-lane connection plan could be costly: $701 million

The Yuma Metropolitan Planning Organization’s executive board gave its approval Thursday to a prioritization of segments of U.S. 95 between Interstates 8 and 10 they want to see widened, as officials prepare their pitch for a state board meeting next month.

For years Yuma leaders have longed for a four-lane connection between their section of I-8 and I-10 to the north, similar to State Route 95 between Gila Bend and Buckeye, to make travel across the desert easier for residents, commercial produce haulers and Yuma Proving Ground traffic.

But such an amenity will be costly. YMPO estimates the total cost in 2016 dollars for the entire segment they’re looking at will be almost $701 million. That figure includes one recently completed project, the $25.9 million bridges across Fortuna Wash which opened last spring.

YMPO Executive Director Paul Ward said he and other staff members are planning to attend the October 20 Arizona State Transportation Board meeting in Prescott Valley, along with YMPO Executive Board Chairman Gary Knight, a Yuma city councilmember; and board member Maria Ramos, vice mayor of San Luis.

Their plan is to advocate for getting at least some of the widening of U.S. 95 into the Arizona Department of Transportation’s Transportation Facilities Construction Plan, which is revised every year and sets the state’s five-year construction schedule.

“We have the opportunity to present to the state board. We don’t have to present to the board of course, but we have the opportunity to, and this might form part of our case,” he said.

YMPO board members said getting the road widened at least to YPG is crucial for the area’s growth, and the priorities set by the board reflect that, with the

eight segments ranked almost directly in order from south to north.

Widening the road as far as Imperial Dam Road, the turnoff to the main YPG entrance, will cost roughly $350 million, YMPO projects, with an average cost around $8 million per mile.

Knight said getting as much traffic-count information on 95 to the state as possible would be important, including traffic coming in and out of YPG. Having the state board members get a look at the area for themselves could be even more important.

Ward said another possible avenue could be to bring the state board down to Yuma, and he’d been in contact with their staff about trying to get Yuma onto the 2018 rotating meeting schedule.

He said, “We should get them down here to tour the YPG so they can see exactly how important that is on a state level, so that maybe they’ll have a little better understanding about...”

“Why it’s so important,” Ramos interjected.

“Yeah, not only that but why we really need to have the 95 widened all the way to I-10,” he added.

Ward said he’d already contacted Col. Ross Poppenberger, YPG’s commanding officer, about the possibility of bringing the transportation board up there for some activities.

Other actions the board took Thursday included:

• Adding four projects to the YMPO’s fiveyear Transportation Improvement Plan, including construction of Avenue E from County 18th through 23rd streets and changes to planned transit projects requested by the Yuma County Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority. • Accepting the findings of an audit of the 2015-16 fiscal year, produced by Phoenix firm Walker and Armstrong.

The YMPO is Yuma County’s federally recognized metropolitan planning organization, tasked with planning how Federal Highway Administration funding passed down through ADOT should be spent locally.

“We should get them (state transportation board members) down here to tour the YPG so they can see exactly how important that is on a state level, so that maybe they’ll have a little better understanding ...” — YMPO Executive Director Paul Ward