Why Maricopa County Voters Should Vote Yes & Urge Others to Vote Yes on Prop. 479

Prop. 479 provides a critical framework for the next generation of transportation infrastructure projects in Maricopa County — without raising taxes.

While there are many reasons to Vote Yes on Prop. 479, here are ones at the top of our list (data taken from the Maricopa Association of Governments and/or Valley Metro documents):

• Prop. 479 fully funds regional commitments to on-going transit service and roughly doubles the amount available for expanded bus transit and/or more frequency on existing bus routes.

• Prop. 479 continues funding for ADA paratransit regionwide to ensure the most vulnerable (e.g., elderly, disabled) have the ability to get to where they need to go. Approximately 400,000 individuals with a disability, who are more likely to depend on transit services, live along transit routes at risk of being discontinued if Prop. 479 does not pass.
• In the Maricopa County region, 67% of transit riders do not have dedicated access to an automobile and will lose their transportation lifeline if Prop. 479 is not approved. This will impact over 77,000 residents and the 18 million trips they take each year.
• K-12 students make over 1.2 million trips a year on routes that are at risk of being discontinued if Prop. 479 is not approved.
• In the Maricopa County region, 47% of all transit trips serve riders traveling to work accounting for over 12.5 million on routes at risk of being discontinued if Prop. 479 is not approved.

In addition to support for bus, dial-a-ride and vanpool services, Prop. 479 allocates money to arterial streets, intersection improvements and regional transportation infrastructure and freeways and other routes in the state highway system. If voters don’t approve Prop 479 this November and renew the transportation funding, it will expire on December 31, 2025.

To learn more about Prop. 479: https://azmag.gov/prop479

Paid for by Arizona PIRG, Inc.