Study: Valley roads, including in Mesa, among deadliest in the U.S.
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Mesa is part of a metro area with some of the nation's deadliest roads, according to a new regional traffic analysis.
Why it matters: The analysis, conducted by the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG), could lead to new measures to make our roads safer.
Driving the news: MAG presented its findings last month from an examination of 2020–24 traffic data, comparing it with 2014–19 data.
- The study found that road safety in the broader Valley is bad and getting worse.
State of play: 30% of fatalities involved "vulnerable road users" — think cyclers and pedestrians — and 70% occurred on non-residential roads.
- The Valley ranked poorly in pedestrian deaths, non-residential road deaths and intersection deaths.
What they're saying: "We know that we have a major safety issue here, but I think it really confirmed for us that intersections are going to be a major focus area," MAG interim safety policy manager Maggie Wong tells Axios.
Zoom in: Mesa has identified 37 miles of road that accounted for 39% of crashes that killed or seriously injured someone, according to the city's 2025 safety plan, which used crash data from 2017–22.
- More than half of those crashes occurred at intersections.
- The highest-risk intersections in the city include Greenfield and Main, Higley and McKellips, and Lindsay and Broadway.
The city started making some safety improvements last year.
- Drivers now need to wait for a green arrow before turning left at five intersections, with the same change coming to more intersections.
- The city is also rebuilding parts of Val Vista Drive and Broadway Road with safer crossings, upgraded signals, sidewalks, bike lanes and better lighting.
Reality check: While several projects are underway, completing all of the recommended improvements from the city safety plan would cost more than $76 million, while making only a modest dent in the number of deadly and serious crashes, city officials said.
What's next: MAG plans to have a more granular analysis of what's causing the Valley's traffic problems done by March, Wong says. Then MAG will determine policy priorities and award grants to member cities for safety improvements.