Episode 5

Meeting The Transit Needs and Keeping Cool in America’s Fastest Growing County

This week we’re staying in Phoenix and picking up where we left off last week. Paul talks with current Valley Metro (https://www.valleymetro.org/) CEO Jessica Mefford-Miller about the light rail expansion, but more than that, Jessica talks about how Valley Metro keeps its cool in the scorching summer heat.

You would not believe the amount of air conditioning needed for each light rail train. Small hint, it’s more than a house or two.

While riding the LRT and streetcars Paul and Jessica talk about how Valley Metro is helping businesses deal with construction and how Artsline brings art to the community while taking transit.

As a special feature, Paul talks with Ryan Johnson, CEO of Culdesac, about this car-free planned community outside of Tempe—with its own light rail stop!

Valley Metro and Phoenix will be the stars of the show on Transit Unplugged TV in January. Make sure you subscribe on YouTube you so don’t miss this smokin’ hot episode. https://www.youtube.com/@transitunplugged

Next week on the show we have Marco D’Angelo President and CEO of CUTA (Canadian Urban Transit Association) and regular contributor Mike Bismeyer with interviews recorded at the recent CUTA conference held in Edmonton, AB.

Question or comment? Email us at info@transitunplugged.com.

0:00 Beating the heat at Valley Metro

01:26 Introduction to Valley Metro Light Rail

02:01 Addressing Construction Impact on Local Businesses

03:00 Exploring the Valley Metro System and its Expansion

04:15 Adapting to Post-Pandemic Ridership Patterns and Heat Challenges

11:57 Exploring Culdesac: A Car-Free Neighborhood

18:03 New LRT trains at Valley Metro and the growth of LRT

18:51 Artsline: community art across Valley Metro stops and stations

20:29 The Future of Valley Metro and Transit in Phoenix

22:22 Coming up next week on Transit Unplugged

Transcript
Paul Comfort:

How does a transit system ramp up to serve tens of thousands

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of new riders from mega events like the Super Bowl and World Series?

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Or handle record breaking heat like this year's 31 day streak

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with temps above 110 degrees?

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All in America's fastest growing county?

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Welcome to Transit Unplugged.

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I'm host and producer Paul Comfort, and today we answer these questions

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with Jessica Mefford Miller, the Chief Executive Officer of Valley Metro

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Regional Public Transportation Authority in Phoenix, as we ride aboard her

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light rail system and new streetcars.

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Plus, we enjoy a bonus chat with Ryan Johnson, the CEO of America's

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first planned car free neighborhood of Culdesac, as we walk through

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his amazing new community in Tempe.

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And if you want to see what we're talking about, you won't have long to wait.

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We filmed our visit and show you plenty more, like behind the scenes

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footage of their operations control center and rail maintenance facility,

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plus their solar grid that supplies all power to their maintenance shop,

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and we include bonus interviews with leaders like the Mayor of Tempe.

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Plus, we share the amazing local food and culture of this Western American

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scene, all on our January episode of Transit Unplugged TV on YouTube.

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Check it out.

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Now come with me on board the Valley Metro light rail system on a ride

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with CEO Jessica Mefford Miller.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Welcome to Valley Metro light rail, Paul . We have a 28

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mile light rail system, 38 stations.

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We've got two expansion projects under construction.

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So, we'll open a new line in 2024 and then again in 2025.

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Awesome.

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And this has been going on for a while, right?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: It has, yeah.

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Actually, our light rail is almost 15 years old.

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Wow.

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Now I understood that, um, Scott was telling me, your predecessor,

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that there was a lot of concern.

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We're in Mesa right now.

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That's right.

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And they were running this through and businesses were upset.

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Tell me about that and how you overcame that.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Well, you know, valley Metro is a street running

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light rail system and we are building in already established communities.

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So that means there's an impact of construction.

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So we've got a couple of programs.

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One in Phoenix, we're working in partnership with City of Phoenix.

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We've got a business assistance program, and to date, we've awarded over a million

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dollars in grants to small businesses that are impacted by construction.

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You know, we are building the service for the community.

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We want those businesses to be here to serve the community once we open.

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And how do you identify businesses that are affected?

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Do they apply for assistance?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: There's an application process, but we actually

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have staff embedded in the project corridors who are working with the

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residents and the small businesses.

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So, we're reaching out to them.

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And what's the results of all that, that program?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: You know, it's, it's been met with a lot of positive

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appeal and we've not seen many small business closures even during the

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pandemic when a lot of our construction activity was at its peak on our South

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Central and Northwest extension projects

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. That's great.

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Alright, so let's back up now.

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And tell me about your system as a whole.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: So, Valley Metro, we serve 18 different

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member cities plus Maricopa County.

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So name

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some of them.

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You got

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Phoenix as the main one, right?

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Yeah, so our biggies are Phoenix, Mesa, and Tempe, and they're

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served by light rail and bus.

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Tempe is also served by streetcar, but here in the valley, even our

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little towns, my little town of Gilbert is about 275, 000 people.

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That doesn't sound like a little town.

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Does it?

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Doesn't, doesn't.

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And we've got other cities that are big in East Valley like Chandler.

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We've got a lot of growth happening in the West Valley in communities

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like Goodyear, Buckeye, and Avondale.

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I mean when you say a lot of growth, Uh, this is the fastest

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growing region in the country, right?

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It is.

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Maricopa County?

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That's right.

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Wow.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Yep, we are growing up, and we are

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growing outward at the same time.

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So in communities like this here in Mesa, we're seeing densification,

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especially seeing that trend happen in Tempe, in the city of Phoenix.

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But we're still expanding outward, particularly in the westward direction.

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So they've got a different set of mobility needs, and they're on a

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different arc on their trajectory.

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And so, here we're delivering local bus service, commuter service,

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microtransit, and paratransit service.

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You were telling me earlier that you feel like, you know,

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because public transit really post pandemic has shifted ridership patterns.

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It has.

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Tell me about how you, how you here in Phoenix, uh, and in

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Valley Metro are addressing that.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Well, Paul, where we've been and what

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the core of our business still is, is urban arterial bus routes.

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light rail service on our dense communities, streetcar service that

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opened in 2022, and then some of our lower density suburban routes.

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But what we're seeing, Paul, is an increase in ridership in the evenings

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and the weekend periods , and a little bit less ridership on our

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commuter oriented routes that are heading into downtown Phoenix.

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Yeah, everybody's seeing that, right?

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Yeah, people are working remotely.

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We've got a lot of tech employment here in the mountains.

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Is it some remote work?

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And so we're having to really assume a more entrepreneurial

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disposition as an agency.

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We are keeping our thumb on the pulse of what our consumers want, and that

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includes demand response and service, smaller vehicles, and in some of

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those low density communities , a 40 foot bus coming every 30 or 60

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minutes might not be their solution.

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So that's where we're experimenting with microtransit.

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Unpack that a little bit.

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When you say you're experimenting, what are you doing?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: So we are working with member cities.

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There are microtransit pilot programs happening now in the city of...

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Chandler.

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They've got their FLEX service and then out west in Buckeye and Goodyear

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and Surprise, they have a microtransit service as well called We Ride

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it's been really popular and so we've expanded that.

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So Valley Metro is supporting that and the future might take

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on some of those operations.

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And do you, um, Do you contract that out, or how does that work?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: We do contract that out, yeah.

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Valley Metro actually delivers all of our service through contracts.

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That's bus, light rail, streetcar, Really?

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All your service?

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All of our service, that's right.

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And

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so you go out to bids?

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We do.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Like how often?

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Uh, you know, it depends on the contract.

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We just awarded a contract for East Valley Bus Operations Service, and that's got

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a, um, five year base and then multiple option years, so up to ten years.

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But earlier today, I was at your rail maintenance shop.

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You do all that in house?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: We self perform all of our rail vehicle and

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all of our rail system maintenance.

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That's right.

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And, and, one thing that struck me, obviously,

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Phoenix is known for heat.

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Yes, it is.

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Uh, you broke all kinds of records this year, evidently, in July, when

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you had 31 days over 110 degrees.

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That's right.

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What the heck, man!

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Yes!

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So that obviously impacts your, I mean, at night time.

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I heard that it was like 60 days where it didn't go under 90 degrees.

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That's right, yeah.

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So there's no relief.

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So what do you do as a transit agency?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Well, you know, Paul, it is hot in Phoenix.

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It's a hot economy, a hot culture, and hot weather.

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And so, but we're built for it.

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You know, this light rail vehicle that we're on right now, this car

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alone has more air conditioning power than 10 residential homes.

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So we're carrying more AC units on all of our vehicles than

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systems would in other climates.

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The vehicles themselves have done very well.

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So where we've got to actually focus a lot of our heat mitigation

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efforts, Paul, is on the people.

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On our customers, on our employees.

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So our employees are carrying water backpacks.

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They're carrying hydration tools.

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Out in the community, we're distributing shade.

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We erect temporary bus stops where we're having construction activity.

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We distribute water, personal shade like umbrellas.

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It's an ongoing effort to keep cool and hydrated here in the desert.

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And I talked to a lady earlier today that works

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for you who told me that you've got a CEC program or something.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: That's right.

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Tell me about that.

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Yeah, well you're going to meet Ricardo later this morning.

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He's one of our customer experience coordinators.

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And the CECs are ambassadors.

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Their role is to welcome people on board the Valley Metro light rail and streetcar

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system, make sure they know where they're going, provide assistance, and they also

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do drives like our heat relief drives where we're supporting people when

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it's at our hottest moments and they also assist with their special events.

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You know, we do big business.

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for special events.

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Yes.

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We used to host Super Bowl 57 this year.

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Oh, that's right.

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And World Series was just last week.

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Yeah, oh,

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: sorry about that.

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Right, right.

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We were glad to have the chance.

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Yeah, that's right.

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Yeah, yeah.

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You have a lot of big events out here.

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We do.

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And so do you see a spike in ridership?

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Always.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Yeah.

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That's right.

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And so many of our big events are located downtown right on light rail or in

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Tempe, like the Arizona State University campus that is by light rail and

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streetcars.

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tell me about how maintenance differs on your vehicles when it

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comes to, uh, because you've got You're in the desert too, right?

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Particulate matters, all

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: that.

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What are you doing?

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So maintenance on vehicles, whether you're talking about your Honda Civic at home, or

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a light rail vehicle, we're going to get more wear and damage to the vehicles here.

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Vehicles take a beating from the sun.

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And so there are certain components, we're looking at our tires, we're

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replacing tires a lot more often here than you would in a cooler climate.

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Those air conditioning units need service a lot more often, and of course,

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we can't put vehicles out if the air conditioning system isn't working,

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so the components just have to be replaced a little more quickly, but we

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work to try and predict those failures and replace them before they occur.

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That's smart, yeah.

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One of the things we didn't talk about yet was batteries.

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So you're moving to EVs, a lot of people are getting their Tesla or their EV, how

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is battery life affected in the heat?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: So, for us, our range, so we've got a hot climate,

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and then we've got long routes.

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Phoenix has got a super grid system, and so we need our buses, in some

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cases, to travel 260 miles over the course of their duty cycle.

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So, as respecting our new buses, battery life is going to be one of

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our most critical considerations.

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Because we don't want to split up those blocks, that's going to require more

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operators to support that service, and because of our air conditioning use.

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We're drawing down more energy than buses would in cooler climates.

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And where are you at on ridership now,

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post pandemic, as opposed to,

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: you know, prior to it?

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So we're approaching 60 percent of our pre pandemic ridership,

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Paul, and where we've seen the best rebound is on our rail system.

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It's bus system which is languishing a little bit.

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We're about to embark on a comprehensive operational analysis, so we're taking

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a fresh look at our on street services.

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We'll be making some changes so that we can better serve consumers needs

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today and tomorrow because they look different than they did five years

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ago.

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I mean, you've really got to be, you were telling me

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over lunch, and I really like the word you use, entrepreneurial.

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We have to, we have to, what did my friend Lauren Skiver used to tell me?

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If they ain't buying it, we got to stop selling.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: That's right, We can't expect that our consumers

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are going to adapt their lifestyle and travel patterns to match our system.

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We've got to lean into that, so we're doing a lot of surveys.

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We just recently finished a major travel survey diary, and we're going

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to use that in our system redesign.

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So I see here on the vehicle you've got a Transit Security Officer.

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: That's right.

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What do they do?

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Well, she works for Allied Universal Security, one of our contract partners,

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and so she is inspecting fares and making sure everyone has a fare.

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We're a proof of payment system, like most of our rail systems in the U.

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S.

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She's also answering questions and providing assistance to our customers,

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and if she needs to, she'll summon a higher level of engagement within Allied

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Universal or law enforcement partners in any one of our three rail cities.

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Do you have your own law enforcement agency?

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We do not.

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We do not.

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We rely on our partners in Mesa, Tempe, and Phoenix to

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provide law enforcement support.

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Do you pay them, or they

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: just are available?

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Well, City of Phoenix has a transit enforcement unit, and so they support bus

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and light rail across City of Phoenix.

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And then we have different programs in Mesa and Tempe for officers who

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are assigned to the precinct or proactively patrolling light rail

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just like they would in the street or sidewalk in their community.

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Alright, looks like this is our stop.

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Alright.

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We're going to get off and go to this amazing place called

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: Culdesac, right?

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You are going to love it.

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It is car free living in the heart of Tempe.

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It has been wildly popular.

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Awesome.

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We're off, now what station is this we got off at?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: This is Smith Martin Apache Station.

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And this is right by Culdesac.

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That's right.

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So tell me about Culdesac.

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What are we going to see here?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: So Culdesac is car free living.

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It's a dense development, really designed to create a community.

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In this housing development, they've also brought in Tacos Chihuas, one

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of our favorite local taquerias.

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Oh, that's right, we just had lunch.

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That's right, that's right, we had lunch at Tacos Chihuas in downtown Mesa.

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They've got a bike shop here, and they also have an electric vehicle car sharing.

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so that their residents can have access to a car if they need it.

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They've got transit passes and they also have bike and scooter programs.

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There are so many ways to get around Tempe, Paul, without a car.

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So is this part of the town of Tempe?

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: This is, yes, this is here in the city of Tempe.

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But it's a

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development.

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That's right.

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It's designed from scratch to not have

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Jessica Mefford-Miller: cars.

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That's right.

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Yep, when I first visited Culdesac, it was under construction and these

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buildings hadn't yet been erected and now they are populated with residents who

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are enjoying an active urban lifestyle.

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All right, so I just, we just got off the light rail system

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with Jessica and now I'm here in this magical place of Culdesac, Ryan.

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Tell me about it.

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You're the CEO of this?

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Yes.

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You're welcome.

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Thank you.

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So tell me about Culdesac.

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What is it?

Ryan Johnson:

Culdesac Tempe is the first car free neighborhood

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built from scratch in the U.

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S.

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And there's 35 buildings today and we're open and there's a thriving community.

Ryan Johnson:

I actually live here myself.

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Amazing.

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And what, so it's car free.

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What does that mean?

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Like you can't park your car here if you, if you have a car?

Ryan Johnson:

It means that instead of owning a private vehicle, our residents

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use a portfolio of transportation options.

Ryan Johnson:

Okay.

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Including they all get an unlimited light rail pass.

Paul Comfort:

Oh, nice.

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And the light rail's right there.

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We're looking at it right now.

Ryan Johnson:

That's right.

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And we built a crosswalk, uh, right towards it.

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And I just went over it and it felt very safe.

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It did.

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So, so this is shared use.

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So you got like apartments and then you have retail.

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We're looking at, what are we looking at here?

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A grocery store?

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Yeah.

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taco restaurant, a

Ryan Johnson:

fantastic restaurant, we've got a coffee shop and wine bar,

Ryan Johnson:

we've got a co working space, a bike store, and we've got eight different

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micro retailers over there in the plaza, including one of the residents started a

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yoga studio, there's a vintage clothing store, an esthetician, and a tea shop.

Paul Comfort:

Nice.

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And, and so what's the game plan here?

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You've got, uh, it's, it's, it's open for business now, but you're going

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to grow, get more people, et cetera.

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah, so we're getting, we're expecting CFO on

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the last of the buildings in this phase in February, and that'll

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give us a couple hundred residents.

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Today, uh, today we've got more like 60, and the second phase is underway

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with buildings opening next year, and then we'll have phases after that.

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And then as you can see, it's also catalyzed development in the entire area.

Paul Comfort:

Yeah.

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So when you click, when you reach maximum capacity, what are you thinking about?

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A thousand people.

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A thousand people.

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And a bunch of stores.

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You got a WeWork or a, uh, co-working space over there.

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Work space.

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That's great.

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So if you're hybrid working, you can work in there.

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Yep.

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Yeah.

Ryan Johnson:

And, uh, this is Lectric Avenue.

Ryan Johnson:

So we're partnered with the number one electric bike company, and

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electric bikes are another way that our residents get around.

Ryan Johnson:

Um, the number one electric bike company is in Phoenix.

Ryan Johnson:

It's called Lectric and, uh, the CEO lives in Tempe.

Ryan Johnson:

And, uh, one day when we were getting together, he said, we should call one

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of the parts at Culdesac, Electric Avenue, and so we did a deal, and all

Ryan Johnson:

the residents get a free electric bike.

Ryan Johnson:

Really?

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah.

Ryan Johnson:

Dude,

Paul Comfort:

that's awesome.

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Yeah.

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Wow.

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And so you, do you buy here or you just lease?

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You rent a place?

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This one's for rent.

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Okay.

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Yeah.

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That's great.

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And it's, it's 17 acres total.

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Yep.

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And do you plan to expand and do more other places around the country?

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah, there's demand for this all over the country.

Ryan Johnson:

The majority of the U.S wants to live in a walkable neighborhood.

Ryan Johnson:

The National Association of Realtors did a study and every

Ryan Johnson:

generation would pay a premium to live in a walkable neighborhood,

Ryan Johnson:

including 92 percent of Gen Z.

Ryan Johnson:

So the demand is high.

Ryan Johnson:

After this has been open, we're hearing from cities and residents

Ryan Johnson:

all over the country and we have some exciting things that we're working on.

Paul Comfort:

Okay.

Paul Comfort:

Yeah, that's great.

Paul Comfort:

What else do you want to tell me about it that I've missed?

Ryan Johnson:

That our residents use a portfolio of transportation options,

Ryan Johnson:

so that includes the light rail, electric bikes, electric scooters,

Ryan Johnson:

uh, rideshare, we're partnered with Lyft, um, autonomous vehicle ride hail.

Ryan Johnson:

Oh yeah,

Paul Comfort:

I rode that last night.

Paul Comfort:

Yeah, what'd you think?

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The Waymo?

Paul Comfort:

Yeah.

Paul Comfort:

Yeah, what a trip!

Ryan Johnson:

The steering wheel's turning and nobody's there.

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah, and um, I don't know if you noticed, but one, you know, the uh, the

Ryan Johnson:

Waymos, they actually, they actually respect even painted bike lanes.

Ryan Johnson:

Um, so that's something that I think is going to surprise people with

Ryan Johnson:

how much it can improve road safety.

Paul Comfort:

Yeah, absolutely.

Paul Comfort:

Wow.

Paul Comfort:

So, um, uh, tell me a bit.

Paul Comfort:

So we had lunch at this, um, at the taco restaurant and they have

Paul Comfort:

multiple ones here, but this was

Ryan Johnson:

like upscale.

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah, this is one of their, they have a, they have a few higher end restaurants.

Ryan Johnson:

One of them is called Bacanora.

Ryan Johnson:

It's on the New York Times top 50 in the country list.

Ryan Johnson:

Really?

Ryan Johnson:

And then there's a Spiritu in Mesa and they're a James Beard winner.

Ryan Johnson:

And then this is their new restaurant.

Ryan Johnson:

Kachina Chiwas.

Ryan Johnson:

It's a husband, wife couple, Armando and Nadia, and they're fantastic.

Ryan Johnson:

And they're, uh, active in.

Ryan Johnson:

In our community, and there's lots of events that we host together, and they're

Ryan Johnson:

actually going to be opening the coffee shop and wine bar called Cafe Chihuas.

Ryan Johnson:

Oh, nice!

Paul Comfort:

And you mentioned events.

Paul Comfort:

Do you do, like, do you have, this is a nice community, you have

Paul Comfort:

things to bring everybody together?

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah, so, some of it happens every day because the retail

Ryan Johnson:

is open, and our residents have guests.

Ryan Johnson:

Um, we have some, some, uh, recurring and some ad hoc events.

Ryan Johnson:

So we do a weekly market called Little Cholla.

Ryan Johnson:

And we're expecting a few hundred people, up to 500 people, um, this Thursday.

Ryan Johnson:

A market?

Ryan Johnson:

Like, like what kind of market?

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah, it's a, it's a night market, so there's different vendors, um, we'll

Ryan Johnson:

have food trucks, um, local, local companies that are selling their goods.

Ryan Johnson:

Yeah.

Ryan Johnson:

Um, and, uh, it's kind of a whole, whole range of things, and it allows people

Ryan Johnson:

to be creative and have a small scale space without needing to open a store.

Ryan Johnson:

And it's a time for our residents to come together and from the

Ryan Johnson:

outside community to come together.

Ryan Johnson:

That's great.

Ryan Johnson:

Well,

Paul Comfort:

this is great, Ryan.

Paul Comfort:

I really wish you the best as you continue to grow.

Ryan Johnson:

Thank you.

Paul Comfort:

We just took a tour of Culdesac.

Paul Comfort:

I love the connectivity you've got with your transit system.

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: Yeah, it's a great development, super accessible.

Paul Comfort:

We come right to the front door of Culdesac.

Paul Comfort:

Amazing.

Paul Comfort:

Now we're back on your light rail system.

Paul Comfort:

We're on one of your brand new vehicles.

Paul Comfort:

Tell me about this.

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: So this is one of our new Siemens vehicles.

Paul Comfort:

This vehicle is part of a series that arrived to support our Northwest extension

Paul Comfort:

that's going to open in early 2024.

Paul Comfort:

And also our South Central extension which opens in 2025.

Paul Comfort:

Awesome.

Paul Comfort:

And I can say that I am cool, comfortable, even though the doors are

Paul Comfort:

opening and closing multiple times.

Paul Comfort:

It's uh, you're four times or ten times the air conditioning

Paul Comfort:

power of a house at work.

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: That's right.

Paul Comfort:

When it's hot in Phoenix, it's always cool aboard Valley Metro.

Paul Comfort:

All these stations we're stopping at, they've got some great

Paul Comfort:

artwork, and like, you know, mosaic tiles, and what's, that's awesome.

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: Every one of our stations, Paul, has art.

Paul Comfort:

Much of it is by local artists.

Paul Comfort:

Typically the stations are tying back to some features of the community itself.

Paul Comfort:

It's a wonderful part of our Artsline, that's what we call it.

Paul Comfort:

So you can go to valleymetro.

Paul Comfort:

org forward slash artsline to learn more.

Paul Comfort:

We actually conduct tours periodically of Artsline.

Paul Comfort:

On some of our under construction projects like South Central, we also have an

Paul Comfort:

arts grants program that awards small grants to local and emerging artists.

Paul Comfort:

So we just did an opening of a mural at an elementary school adjacent to

Paul Comfort:

the light rail corridor last week.

Paul Comfort:

That's something.

Paul Comfort:

That's great.

Paul Comfort:

I love artwork mixed in with transit.

Paul Comfort:

So tell us about where we're going now.

Paul Comfort:

We're going to a place where your light rail system, what is

Paul Comfort:

it, meet up with a streetcar?

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: What's up with streetcar?

Paul Comfort:

Yeah, so streetcar is a three mile, 14 station loop.

Paul Comfort:

It meets light rail at two different places in Tempe.

Paul Comfort:

So the streetcar is designed to be that local circulation all throughout

Paul Comfort:

downtown Tempe and serves the Arizona State University campus.

Paul Comfort:

I notice you and everybody here says Tempe.

Paul Comfort:

Out east where I'm from, we all say Tempe, but you're supposed

Paul Comfort:

to put the pronunciation

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: in the last syllable.

Paul Comfort:

That's how we say it here, yep.

Paul Comfort:

Yeah, that's interesting.

Paul Comfort:

The last syllable.

Paul Comfort:

I'm becoming local, Paul, so

Paul Comfort:

Tempe for me.

Paul Comfort:

And, um, Tempe is basically a suburb of Phoenix, but it's

Paul Comfort:

a big city on its own, right?

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: It really is, you know, and Tempe has the most dense

Paul Comfort:

development in all of the valley.

Paul Comfort:

Really?

Paul Comfort:

It does.

Paul Comfort:

Wow.

Paul Comfort:

Yeah, you're in for a pleasant surprise, I think, Paul.

Paul Comfort:

It's not just Arizona State University, which does have a huge presence.

Paul Comfort:

All right, we got off the light rail, and now on the other

Paul Comfort:

side of the divide, we're here at a...

Paul Comfort:

streetcar station.

Paul Comfort:

Tell me about that.

Paul Comfort:

And we just met with the mayor of Tempe.

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: That's right.

Paul Comfort:

So you can get around Tempe, Paul, without a car.

Paul Comfort:

We have light rail, we have streetcar, we have local bus and circulators, and

Paul Comfort:

we're right here at Dorsey and Apache, which is end of line for the streetcar,

Paul Comfort:

where it meets up with light rail.

Paul Comfort:

Is it going to grow any, expand?

Paul Comfort:

It will.

Paul Comfort:

planning the next expansion right now which will take Streetcar into West Mesa.

Paul Comfort:

Ah, so that's great.

Paul Comfort:

So it'll connect the two

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: towns.

Paul Comfort:

It will, absolutely.

Paul Comfort:

We're already connected by light rail and with that Streetcar

Paul Comfort:

expansion we're going to pick up.

Paul Comfort:

On more of those cultural destinations in Mesa.

Paul Comfort:

That's great.

Paul Comfort:

So you've got the amazing art, art here we just showed here.

Paul Comfort:

You've got a growing system.

Paul Comfort:

You've got the fastest county growing in the country.

Paul Comfort:

You've got an upcoming referendum, which I hope the voters get out and

Paul Comfort:

turn out and show their support for you.

Paul Comfort:

I mean, where do you go in the next three to five years?

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: Well, Paul, we are focused on our customer experience.

Paul Comfort:

We are delivering an expanding system.

Paul Comfort:

We're also leaning in to deliver new technologies and types of service

Paul Comfort:

that are going to meet the ever changing needs of our communities.

Paul Comfort:

We're also investing in technology, new systems, leveraging our talent.

Paul Comfort:

We've got a great team at Valley Metro and then strengthening our

Paul Comfort:

relationships with our communities.

Paul Comfort:

You know, we serve 18 cities and towns.

Paul Comfort:

plus Maricopa County.

Paul Comfort:

We've got a big service area, and within that, there is so much character and

Paul Comfort:

culture in each of those communities.

Paul Comfort:

for people that are moving here, uh, because you're

Paul Comfort:

getting probably over a hundred people every day, I imagine.

Paul Comfort:

That's right.

Paul Comfort:

Moving here.

Paul Comfort:

What would you tell them about, come on, try our system?

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: You know what?

Paul Comfort:

The Valley has something for everyone, and Valley Metro is an accessible,

Paul Comfort:

safe, and convenient way to hit all of the major cultural spots,

Paul Comfort:

employment centers, and a lot of great residential neighborhoods in the Valley.

Paul Comfort:

Very good.

Paul Comfort:

Thank you for

Paul Comfort:

being our

Paul Comfort:

Jessica Mefford-Miller: guest on the podcast.

Paul Comfort:

It's my pleasure, Paul.

Paul Comfort:

Thank you.

Tris Hussey:

Hi.

Tris Hussey:

This is Tris Hussey editor of the Transit Unplugged podcast.

Tris Hussey:

Thanks for listening to this week's episode and a special

Tris Hussey:

thanks to our two guests, Jessica Mefford Miller and Ryan Johnson.

Tris Hussey:

Now coming up next week on the show.

Tris Hussey:

We have two special interviews recorded, live in Edmonton, Alberta

Tris Hussey:

at the CUTA conference that Canadian.

Tris Hussey:

Urban transit association.

Tris Hussey:

First Paul speaks with Marco D'Angelo president and CEO of CUTA and then

Tris Hussey:

with our regular contributor, Mike Bismeyer where Paul and Mike talk about

Tris Hussey:

the young leaders summit and what it means to be a leader today in transit.

Tris Hussey:

While you're listening to the show.

Tris Hussey:

If you could do as a favor and rate and review Transit Unplugged.

Tris Hussey:

Wherever you listen to podcasts.

Tris Hussey:

We'd really appreciate it.

Tris Hussey:

Reading and reviewing the show helps other people find Transit Unplugged and become

Tris Hussey:

part of our transit enthusiast community.

Tris Hussey:

Transit Unplugged is brought to you by Modaxo.

Tris Hussey:

At Modaxo, we're passionate about moving the world's people and at

Tris Hussey:

transit unplugged, we're passionate about telling those stories.

Tris Hussey:

So until next week, ride safe and ride happy.

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Transit Unplugged
Leading podcast on public transit hosted by Paul Comfort, SVP Modaxo.

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