Valley Metro celebrates opening of South Central light-rail extension

Valley Metro began service on its 5.5-mile South Central light-rail extension on June 7, marking an important milestone in the agency’s rail system becoming a 35-mile, two-line light-rail system. The service launch was celebrated with over 5,000 community members, and federal, state and local officials.  

With the opening of the extension, the A line now travels east to west, the B line travels north to south and weekday service increased to 12 minutes before 7:00 p.m. 

"The completion of this project marks an important new connection for residents and moves us closer to our goals as a sustainable and accessible city," said Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. "This historic extension introduces the region's first two-line rail system, creates safer streets and new bike lanes, and adds shade and public art—all while connecting more residents to jobs, education, entertainment and other amenities across the Valley. Equally important, it provides a whole new opportunity to showcase the unique offerings of this thriving corridor." 

The $1.34 billion project was made possible through strong federal-local partnership, with federal grants providing more than half the funding alongside Phoenix Transportation 2050 and regional Proposition 400 investments. 

Valley Metro says the extension will add more than 8,000 daily riders to the light-rail system, which currently serves an average of 32,000 boardings per day. 

Community-driven public art is featured throughout the extension, with 18 installations created by predominantly local artists.  

The opening celebrations were held at three locations and included a community procession with over 250 community participants, a lowrider and classic car show, family-friendly activities, performances by local entertainers and over 60 local business pop-ups and food vendors. The festivities culminated with a ribbon cutting ceremony and first rides at the Baseline/Central Ave Park-and-Ride. 

"Today we are celebrating 5.5 new rail miles and the transformation of Valley Metro Rail into a multi-line operation, creating an important new connection to South Phoenix,” said Valley Metro CEO Jessica Mefford-Miller. "We built this project with the community to achieve their vision; we will continue to advance the community’s vision to connect to the West and East Valleys and bring greater mobility and economic opportunity to more of metro Phoenix. I congratulate and thank the community and our teams for today’s successful opening." 

Valley Metro notes the project created over 5,000 local jobs, with over 600 workers hired directly from South Phoenix communities. There are eight new stations, a new park-and-ride facility at Baseline Road/Central Avenue and a transit hub converging in downtown Phoenix. The extension also includes a number of community upgrades such as enhanced bike lanes, pedestrian pathways, over 550 new trees and desert-adapted landscaping. It also included comprehensive utility upgrades, replacing more than 30 miles of underground infrastructure. 

Valley Metro and the city of Phoenix say they prioritized supporting small, locally owned businesses throughout construction through a first-of-its-kind grant program. Through the Small Business Financial Assistance Program, over 270 grants totaling over $1.6 million were awarded to small businesses along the corridor.