Pinal County leaders preview ASU Decision Theater model to inform regional transportation planning
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Summary
County officials and ASU Decision Theater staff presented a new data-aggregation and scenario-modeling tool aimed at guiding long-term transportation, land-use and economic decisions for the Pinal County region.
Pinal County officials showed the public a demonstration of Arizona State University’s Decision Theater, a data-driven modeling tool county leaders say can shape future regional transportation and development planning.
County management introduced the presentation as an outgrowth of work by the Pinal Regional Transportation Authority and said the tool can bring data from multiple jurisdictions into a single, updatable modeling environment. “If we were able to gather all the information from all the cities, from all the MPOs, from the county and from the PRTA, put them all in one place, we can analyze and create scenarios based on that information,” the county manager said during the meeting.
Trey, an ASU Decision Theater representative, said the platform can model where to site infrastructure and businesses — from solar fields to roads — and forecast environmental, economic and workforce impacts under different scenarios. “We can actually look at it from a micro standpoint. I can look at it just for Casa Grande or just for a road in Casa Grande, or I can look at it for the whole region,” he said.
Staff and the ASU team emphasized the tool’s ability to incorporate evolving technologies and test long-range scenarios — 20, 30 or 50 years out — without committing resources before stakeholders can see modeled outcomes. The presentation encouraged sharing data among cities, MPOs, utilities and county agencies so the model reflects regional infrastructure, utilities and land-use assumptions.
No formal action was taken; the item was presented for information and to give county staff and elected officials a public demonstration. County officials said further discussions and possible follow-ups are expected in future meetings.
Why it matters: County leaders framed the Decision Theater as a means to coordinate planning across multiple jurisdictions and to test impacts of new infrastructure, housing and industry locations before making capital commitments.