With the help of the Road Maintenance and Improvement Fund, Pinal County was able to improve Park Link Drive and offer a critical connection between Red Rock, the I-10 area, and SR-79. The Road Maintenance and Improvement Fund helped complete the connection by funding a total of eight miles of Asphalt Rock Dust Palliative (ARDP,) which is a surface treatment that combines two layers of asphalt and aggregate to eliminate dust and decrease the need for routine grading. Finished in 2008, these final eight miles helped complete a total of 18 miles of surfacing. This total project cost approximately $1.5 million, including approximately $950,000 from the 2006 half-cent Road Maintenance and Improvement Fund.
Preservation ensures that roads last longer with preventative maintenance and can help avoid more expensive rebuilds. These improvements to Park Link Drive are an excellent demonstration of how the voter-approved funding is helping the citizens in the central and southern portions of Pinal County by not only providing necessary improvements resulting in safer road conditions but also convenience for residents.
Before work was completed, Park Link Drive in Southern Pinal County was a washed-out dirt road that was susceptible to flooding and sometimes not passable.
This had been the only link between I-10 and the mountain communities in the eastern parts of Pinal County without going through Oro Valley/Tucson. Because of the Road Maintenance and Improvement Fund, this roadway has made travel to I-10 safer and faster.
Even after the initial build, the Road Maintenance and Improvement Fund allows the county to repair and maintain Park Link Drive, so it is a viable road for decades to come.
Improvement of Park Link Drive has led to it being a thoroughfare for commercial traffic as well. This is one of the hidden economic benefits of the Road Maintenance and Improvement Fund.