By Taylor Seely | Arizona Republic
Construction of a new highway long sought in the southwest Valley to ease traffic congestion on Interstate 10 could be closer to reality as regional planners recently agreed to seek approval to extend Maricopa County’s transportation tax for 25 years.
The Maricopa Association of Governments Regional Council proposes to extend the sales tax to fund transportation projects across Maricopa County. The measure will need state lawmakers’ approval to refer it to voters in 2022.
The MAG council wrestled with how much funding to seek — to get the OK from Arizona lawmakers and then voters.
The regional council was leery of proposing to increase the half-cent sales tax, but southwest Valley leaders worried that without an increase there wouldn’t be enough revenue collected to build State Route 30, which they’ve long sought as a reliever for commuters heading east for work.
