PHOENIX – Maricopa, your emails are working.

Arizona House representatives passed two Pinal County transportation bills during floor votes yesterday afternoon, including one that will provide additional funding to widen State Route 347.

Reps. Chris Lopez and Teresa Martinez, Republicans of Casa Grande who represent Maricopa, were both thrilled over the unanimous votes for House Bill 2557, they said. It was an about-face from the House Committee on Appropriations vote last month.

“I was so glad,” Lopez reacted. “It’s very fulfilling that we are making these decisions for our constituents.”

Martinez commended bipartisan support for that bill, saying, “There are some bills that [Democrats] can say, ‘This is a good bill,’ and then we work together.”

But being a “good bill” does not a law make.

Martinez said the constant emails from Maricopa residents were a huge driving force in convincing lawmakers to vote in favor of the bill. She mentioned this while explaining her vote on the floor.

“Everybody gets the 347 emails. Once this road is widened, those emails go away. I promise,” she said.

HB 2557 would bring an additional $16.2 million to help widen the Pinal County portion of SR 347. Lopez cited the state highway’s high rates of traffic, crashes and fatalities during the vote.

“When we have statistics like that alone, it should be well enough to get this bill passed and this appropriation to go through,” he said.

Rep. Quantá Crews (D-Phoenix) also vocalized her support during the floor vote, stating she had witnessed numerous accidents while traveling the highway to visit her family in Maricopa.

“I have dodged several accidents and that’s why I’m supporting this. I’ve seen the need, and I know that it’s necessary,” she said.

Road research bill a less popular winner

HB 2234 narrowly passed 31-27 with bipartisan support — and bipartisan opposition.

More Republicans voted against the bill than for it, but Martinez said she wasn’t worried about its future.

“Plan B is that [Arizona State University President] Michael Crow was going to pick up the tab because they want to do [the study],” she said.

The bill was originally intended to fund environmental and engineering studies for Interstate 11, the future route to Las Vegas that would cut through Hidden Valley, but was amended after lawsuits halted the project.

The updated version appropriates $500,000 for researchers at ASU’s Decision Theater to study Pinal County’s transportation woes and come up with innovative solutions beginning this next fiscal year.