Tucson Tram

Tucson Tram
A tram in downtown
Basic information
Country	United States
city	Tucson
opening	July 25, 2014
operator	RATP Dev McDonald Transit
Infrastructure
Route length	6.3 km
Gauge	1435  mm
Power system	750 V DC overhead line
Operating mode	Bidirectional operation
Stops	22 (5 only in one direction)
Depots	1
business
Lines	1
Clock in the peak hours	10 - 15 min
Clock in the SVZ	20-30 min
vehicles	8 United Streetcar 200
statistics
Passengers	4000 / day

As Sun Link marketed tram Tucson is a major mode of transport of the university town of Tucson in the US - State of Arizona . The single line opened in July 2014 and connects the university with downtown, the Tucson Convention Center and the Mercado District urban development area . The investment cost of $ 196 million was met partly through city funds and partly through federal grants. The tram is part of the regional Sun Tran bus network.

financing

In May 2006, Pima County voters voted in a referendum to invest $ 2.1 billion in the local transportation network, of which $ 75 million was earmarked for building and another $ 12.7 million for running a Tucson streetcar. In December 2010, the city was awarded a federal $ 62 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant to secure funding and move the project forward. An additional $ 6 million in federal funding was granted to the project through the Federal Transit Administration's New Starts program. Other donors, especially the municipal waterworks, contributed $ 10.6 million to redesign and improve the infrastructure along the route.

Construction phase

In March 2012, the first $ 56 million contract was tendered. This included opening the road surface, changing the lanes, relocating the rails and the new paving. The contract was awarded to Old Pueblo Trackworks, a consortium of Granite Construction and RailWorks Track Systems. Construction began in April 2012 and was completed during the summer of 2013. In a first phase, the underpass on Warren Street and all straight sections east of the Convention Center were prepared, from November 2012 in the second phase, the curves, the section in the Mercado District and remaining work. The road closures moved with the construction work, so that only small areas were affected.

The Luis Gutierrez Bridge, named after the former city director, was built over the Santa Cruz River through another contract; it connects the Convention Center with the Mercado District. The tram shares the structure with motorized individual traffic and bicycle traffic .

A depot for the maintenance and storage of rolling stock was built at the municipal train station for $ 8 million. Construction began in May 2012. On September 6, 2013, the building was officially opened by Mayor Jonathan Rothschild and Senator Steve Farley at the same time as the presentation of the first tram car , a significant supporter of the tram.

Vehicle use

Eight articulated multiple units from the United Streetcar 200 series are available for the tram , of which up to six cars can be used at the same time. The bidirectional vehicles are approximately 20 meters (66 feet) long. Of the three parts, the middle one is low-floor and enables barrier-free entry. The vehicles are powered by four 90 kW motors that are supplied with electricity via an overhead line; the theoretical maximum speed is 70 km / h. With a total capacity of 156 passengers, there are 29 seats.

The 200 series is largely identical to the United Streetcar 100, which is used in Washington, DC and Portland. For operation in the warm climate of the southern USA, the model 200 was equipped with a more powerful air conditioning system. The 100 series, in turn, is a license replica of the Škoda 10T .

In June 2010, the city ordered a shipment of seven cars for $ 26 million. On the advice of the Federal Transit Administration, this order was expanded to eight vehicles. On August 30, 2013, the first low-loader tram reached the city. Production delays delayed the commissioning of the tram, which was originally scheduled for the end of 2013. In May 2013, the city council notified United Streetcar to file damages for the delays. A settlement was finally agreed with the parent company Vigor Works, which compensated the city with $ 1.7 million for the effort involved.

Route and operation

Line course

A tram at the 3rd and University stop

The route begins with a single track on Helen Street and runs alongside a bicycle lane through the Warren Street underpass to the university campus. It turns west on 2nd Street and widens into two directional tracks. Behind the university, the route will be directed over Park Avenue onto University Boulevard. Via 4th Avenue it finally leads to the train station, where the depot is also located, and on to downtown. There the two directional tracks split and cross the city center on the parallel streets of Broadway Avenue and Congress Street. Both direction tracks unite on Granada Avenue and cross the Santa Cruz River over the Luis Gutierrez Bridge. Behind it, the route reaches the Mercado District, where it ends in a block bypass .

On the double-track sections of the route, island platforms are located in the middle of the street, the other stops are located, partly as a cape stop , on the roadside. All stops are barrier-free.

Timetable

	Monday Wednesday	Thursday Friday	Saturday	Sunday
7-8h	15th	15th
8-9h			30th	30th
9-10h	10	10
10am to 6pm			15th	20th
18-20h	15th	15th		30th
8-10pm
22-0h
0-2h		30th	30th

Clock intervals in minutes

Tariff

A single ticket costs $ 1.50 and can also be used to transfer to the bus; a day ticket costs $ 4. Ticket machines are set up at all stops; tickets cannot be purchased in the vehicle. It is also possible to travel with a rechargeable card or monthly card. When entering the vehicle, the passenger has to validate the ticket at a scanner.

Web links

• Official website
• City information page
• Information page of the regional transport authority
• Website about the depot

Individual evidence

All sources are written in English .

1. ^ Patrick McNamara: Tucson's streetcar exceeds ridership expectations . In: Arizona Daily Star , March 15, 2015. 
2. ^ Rob O'Dell: US grants Tucson $ 63M for streetcar . In: Arizona Daily Star , December 29, 2010. Retrieved June 6, 2012. 
3. ↑ ^{a b} Vitu, Teya: Streetcar Construction Will Start in Late April , In: Downtown Tucsonan , March 2012
4. ^ Douglas John Bowen: Joint venture awarded Tucson streetcar contract . In: Railway Age . March 30, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
5. ^ Will Seberger: City breaks ground on Modern Streetcar . In: TucsonSentinel.com , April 12, 2012. Retrieved August 20, 2012. 
6. ↑ Janet Rose Jackman: City to celebrate streetcar as Congress St. closes . In: TucsonSentinel.com , April 9, 2012. Retrieved April 27, 2012. 
7. ↑ Bethany Barnes: Streetcar construction starts in April; here's what you need to know . In: Arizona Daily Star , March 7, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2012. 
8. ^ Becky Pallack: Bridge art spotlights history . In: Arizona Daily Star , Sept. 8, 2012. 
9. ^ Teya Vitu: 4th Avenue Open During Storm Drainage Work . In: Downtown Tucsonan , October 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2012. 
10. ^ Sam Salzwedel: Hundreds see official unveiling of Streetcar and facility . In: KVOA , September 6, 2013. Archived from the original on September 9, 2013 Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Retrieved April 24, 2016.  
11. ^ United Streetcar Options . United Streetcar. Archived from the original on September 2, 2010. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved September 5, 2013. 
12. ^ Brad Schmidt: Oregon streetcars: Money flows despite missed deadlines, cost overruns . In: The Oregonian , April 20, 2013. 
13. ^ Tucson to United Streetcar: Build seven . In: Railway Age , June 8, 2010. Retrieved August 17, 2012. 
14. ↑ Darren DaRonco: Backup streetcar to cost Tucson $ 3.6M . In: Arizona Daily Star , July 13, 2012. Retrieved September 27, 2012. 
15. ^ Truck delivers first new streetcar to Tucson from Ore. manufacturing plant; total of 8 planned . In: The Republic , Associated Press, August 30, 2013. Archived from the original on September 5, 2013 Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Retrieved April 24, 2016.  
16. ↑ Marcelino Benito: Cashing in: Streetcar delays could deliver dollars to City of Tucson . In: KGUN-TV , May 1, 2013. Archived from the original on May 5, 2013 Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Retrieved April 24, 2016.  
17. ↑ Becky Pallack: Tucson gets $ 1.7M - in parts and labor - for streetcar delays . In: Arizona Daily Star , February 11, 2016. 
18. ↑ sungo Fare Payment, General Information . Sun Tran. Retrieved April 16, 2016.