It's official: Tucson's Complete Streets policy is one of the best in the nation!
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Friends,
When we set out to push for a Complete Streets policy back in 2016, we knew it would need to have teeth and be driven by the community in order to be impactful. The multi-year process that followed resulted in a policy that laid out a clear roadmap for change, rooted in equity, that used binding language.
Today Smart Growth America released a report ranking Tucson's policy among the top 5 in the U.S.
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The Best Complete Streets Policies 2023 is a new report that evaluates and ranks the 157 Complete Streets policies passed across the country since 2019, in jurisdictions of many sizes and contexts. Tucson had the 4th highest score along with Joplin, MO.
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The report also features case studies of four communities that adopted exemplary Complete Streets policies, detailing the policy development process and how they navigated barriers to adoption. We're excited to share that Tucson is one of them!
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We want to take a moment to thank and share this moment of celebration with the City of Tucson and all of the amazing partners and community members who put in time, energy, resources, and dedication in making Tucson's Complete Street policy a strong, binding, and visionary document that we can all be proud of. Visit our website for a recap of the process, videos, digital stories, and our Complete Streets Community Engagement Toolkit.
While Tucson's streets are still far from being complete and safe, we're heartened by this recognition and by the major progress that's been made as a result of the Complete Streets policy:
- establishment of the Complete Streets Coordinating Council,
- development of Move Tucson
- creation of Complete Streets Design Guidelines,
- funding for Complete Streets through Prop 411,
...to name a few.
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“This recognition of Tucson’s Complete Streets Policy by Smart Growth America is a strong signal that we’re on the right path with the transportation and land use policy changes we’ve made over the last few years. We are continuing this work by investing over $150 million in bicycle and pedestrian safety infrastructure improvements, along with changes to our development policies, to help us meet our goals for eliminating severe traffic injuries and fatalities, achieve our climate action and adaptation goals, and improve quality of life and mobility for all Tucsonans.”
-Tucson Mayor Regina Romero
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There's still big work ahead and we thank you for being here for it. Let's keep pushing for what we know is possible, together!
In community,
 
Emily Yetman
Executive Director
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P.S. Tune into a webinar one week from today featuring LSA's very own Evren Sönmez as she and others reflect on lessons learned along the way:
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The mission of Living Streets Alliance is to advocate for a thriving Tucson by creating great streets for all of us.
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