Phoenix Reassesses Controversial Reversible Lanes with Public Input
In a move to address longstanding traffic concerns, Phoenix is re-evaluating the reversible lanes on Seventh Street and Seventh Avenue. This initiative aims to enhance traffic flow and safety in central Phoenix.
The Phoenix Street Transportation Department is actively seeking public feedback as part of a traffic study focusing on midtown. The study, currently in its initial stage, will examine traffic capacity, connectivity, lane usage, and crash data to pinpoint areas of congestion and inefficiencies. For more details, visit the official site.
Scott Beck, a consultant from WSP USA, explained, “We’ll start with corridor analysis, which includes an opportunity for the public to provide input early in the process to shape the study’s purpose. Then we’ll develop and evaluate potential scenarios based on what we learn, and then identify a preferred scenario and share it with the public through in-person and virtual meetings in the fall of this year.”
The study will ultimately recommend how to manage the reversible lanes. Meanwhile, a petition signed by over 5,000 residents has prompted a closer look at the lanes, urging the City Council to consider their removal.
In response, the Phoenix City Council called for a comprehensive traffic study on May 21, 2025, to explore potential solutions, including adjustments or elimination of these lanes. The study encompasses a significant portion of central Phoenix, from McDowell Road to Dunlap Avenue.
Residents are encouraged to participate by completing surveys, marking areas of concern on a community map, or attending a public meeting. The first virtual public meeting is scheduled for May 7, with online feedback due by May 29.
After collecting public input and completing the corridor analysis, the transportation department will draft recommendations. These drafts will undergo further public review before finalizing recommendations for the City Council’s consideration in December.
“Each of these recommendations involves trade-offs, so this task will be about balancing safety, mobility, access, and the community needs to develop practical, well-rounded solutions for the future,” Beck noted.
Known colloquially as “suicide lanes,” these reversible lanes were introduced nearly 50 years ago to mitigate peak hour traffic congestion. Matt Wilson, assistant director for the city’s street transportation department, clarified, “That’s not a term that we use around the street transportation department. We stick to reversible lanes in our references to it.”
This isn’t the first examination of the reversible lanes. A 2021 study indicated that removing these lanes, partially or entirely, could increase travel times by over 40% in some areas.
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