Phoenix riders,... Most of you are familiar with Adventure Cycling's
Southern Tier route that goes through Phoenix heading east to Tempe. ( picture yourself heading east on 60 from say Wickenburg)
ACA does a great job but Phoenix is growing so fast they might could use our help.
The latest ACA information states,
"On map 14, Lake Pleasant Rd. has become increasingly busy with truck traffic, and there are no current plans to add shoulders to the road. As a result, we are recommending an alternate. 26 miles of this alternate uses US 60, a 4-lane divided highway with wide shoulders. It is 9.5 miles shorter than the existing route."
Ok, so now that you have a visual, here are the latest directions. (heading east)
Eastbound: From the junction of US 60 and SR 74, continue on US 60. *26(42)Turn left onto N. 111th Ave. *27(43)Turn right onto W. Thunderbird Blvd. *31(50)Turn right onto 79th Ave. *32.5(52)Turn left onto Cholla St. *36(58)Turn right onto 49th Ave. *36.5(59)Turn left onto Desert Cove Ave. In 0.2 mi., turn left onto 47th Ave. At the end of 47th Ave, take shared-use path and cross Arizona Canal. Turn right onto Arizona Canal Path and rejoin route.
This addenda can be found
here.
Now you are basically on the Grand all the way to 111th street and the rest of the route looks pretty busy until the Canal - There must be a safer and better way, no?
Note: The mileage number after each asterisk * is telling you how many miles you have travelled from the starting point, or in this case, the junction of US 60 and SR 74.
Help design a route to the Canal that is better and safer.
How would you cycle this route?
Thanks for any help,
Airwick