Council orders comprehensive study of Seventh Avenue/Seventh Street reversible lanes after sustained public pressure
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Summary
After hours of testimony from residents and business owners calling the 'reverse' lanes on Seventh Avenue and Seventh Street unsafe and harmful to local commerce, the council directed staff to conduct a comprehensive traffic study and produce options for council review by fall 2026.
The Phoenix City Council on Wednesday voted to commission a comprehensive study of the reversible “reverse” lanes on Seventh Avenue and Seventh Street after hundreds of residents, business owners and community groups testified they create traffic danger and undermine neighborhood business access.
A wide and sustained public outcry — speakers said the lanes have become confusing, dangerous and underused — pushed the council to adopt a targeted study scope aimed at understanding traffic impacts and alternatives. Councilwoman Laura Pastor moved the referral; the motion passed on a roll call vote.
Proponents of removing the lanes described frequent near‑misses, head‑on collisions and direct economic harm to local businesses who say customers avoid centers because left turns are restricted during the reversible‑lane hours. “These lanes are not necessary anymore. They’re very outdated, and they don't need to be in our communities,” said small business owner Camille (last name in transcript), one of dozens who testified.
Street Transportation staff explained prior studies and recommended a deeper consultant‑led assessment that would model traffic diversions, crash patterns, business access, and equity impacts. Staff proposed engagement with petitioners and neighborhoods and said the city has Prop 4‑79 transportation funds programmed for related corridor improvements; a full citywide implementation would require additional budgeting.
The council directed staff to: hire a consultant and begin the study (staff aimed to have a consultant on board by Sept. 1, 2025); focus analysis on traffic and safety impacts from Nineteenth Avenue to Sixteenth Street and assess the core corridor of Missouri Avenue to McDowell Road; meet with petitioners and stakeholders within 30 days to shape the scope; and report options to a council subcommittee by December 2026.
The decision was procedural: the council did not remove the lanes at this meeting but ordered the study and public engagement process. Advocates said the motion’s schedule and community engagement commitments are the first real steps toward reconsidering decades‑old reversible‑lane policy.