The Arizona Sun Corridor, shortened Sun Corridor, is a
megaregion
A megalopolis () or a supercity, also called a megaregion, is a group of metropolitan areas which are perceived as a continuous urban area through common systems of transport, economy, resources, ecology, and so on. They are integrated enoug ...
, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the
U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
state of
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
. The Sun Corridor is comparable to
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
in both size and population. It is one of the fastest growing
conurbation
A conurbation is a region comprising a number of metropolises, cities, large towns, and other urban areas which through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban or industrially developed area. In most ca ...
s in the country and is speculated to double its population by 2040.
The largest metropolitan areas are the
Phoenix metropolitan area
The Phoenix Metropolitan Area – also the Valley of the Sun, the Salt River Valley, or Metro Phoenix (known by most locals simply as “the Valley”) – is the largest metropolitan area in the Southwestern United States, centered on the city ...
– Valley of the Sun, and the
Tucson metropolitan area
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
– The Old Pueblo. The regions' populace is nestled in the valley of a desert environment.
Similar to
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
, the urban area extends into Mexico, reaching the communities of
Nogales and
Agua Prieta
Agua Prieta (English: ''Dark Water'', Opata: ''Bachicuy'') is a town in Agua Prieta Municipality in the northeastern corner of the Mexican state of Sonora. It stands on the Mexico–U.S. border, adjacent to the town of Douglas, Arizona. The mun ...
.
Its population is composed of five metropolitan areas:
Phoenix
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
,
Tucson
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
,
Prescott,
Sierra Vista-Douglas and
Nogales. Of these, two are metropolitan areas with over 1,000,000 residents: the
Phoenix metropolitan area
The Phoenix Metropolitan Area – also the Valley of the Sun, the Salt River Valley, or Metro Phoenix (known by most locals simply as “the Valley”) – is the largest metropolitan area in the Southwestern United States, centered on the city ...
with 4.85 million residents and the
Tucson
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
metropolitan area with over 1 million residents. The Arizona Sun Corridor is made up of all of
Maricopa
Maricopa can refer to:
Places
* Maricopa, Arizona, United States, a city
** Maricopa Freeway, a piece of I-10 in Metropolitan Phoenix
** Maricopa station, an Amtrak station in Maricopa, Arizona
* Maricopa County, Arizona, United States
* Marico ...
,
Pinal and
Pima
Pima or PIMA may refer to:
People
* Pima people, the Akimel O'odham, Indigenous peoples in Arizona (U.S.) and Sonora (Mexico)
Places
* Pima, Arizona, a town in Graham County
* Pima County, Arizona
* Pima Canyon, in the Santa Catalina Mountains ...
counties, along with parts of
Yavapai
The Yavapai are a Native American tribe in Arizona. Historically, the Yavapai – literally “people of the sun” (from ''Enyaava'' “sun” + ''Paay'' “people”) – were divided into four geographical bands who identified as separate, i ...
,
Santa Cruz and
Cochise
Cochise (; Apache: ''Shi-ka-She'' or ''A-da-tli-chi'', lit.: ''having the quality or strength of an oak''; later ''K'uu-ch'ish'' or ''Cheis'', lit. ''oak''; June 8, 1874) was leader of the Chihuicahui local group of the Chokonen and principa ...
counties.
It is home to over 86 percent of Arizona's population.
Most of the Arizona Sun Corridor is in the
Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert ( es, Desierto de Sonora) is a desert in North America and ecoregion that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the southwestern United States (in Arizona ...
. To the south of the region is the border between the United States and Mexico, and to the north and east is the
Arizona transition zone
The Arizona transition zone is a diagonal northwest-by-southeast region across central Arizona. The region is a transition from the higher-elevation Colorado Plateau in Northeast Arizona and the Basin and Range region of lower-elevation deserts ...
and the
Mountains of Arizona
Arizona is a landlocked state situated in the southwestern region of the United States of America. It has a vast and diverse geography famous for its deep canyons, high- and low-elevation deserts, numerous natural rock formations, and volcanic ...
. The Southern California Megaregion is to the west and is the nearest other Megaregion to the Arizona Sun Corridor.
Extent
![Arizona Sun Corridor with largest communities in each county highlighted](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Arizona_Sun_Corridor_with_largest_communities_in_each_county_highlighted.png)
The Arizona Sun Corridor lies in the
American Southwest
The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, N ...
, about halfway between the
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
and
Front Range
The Front Range is a mountain range of the Southern Rocky Mountains of North America located in the central portion of the U.S. State of Colorado, and southeastern portion of the U.S. State of Wyoming. It is the first mountain range encountere ...
Megaregions. It is shown on the map in deep blue.
Below is a table listing all communities of the Arizona Sun Corridor with a population of at least 10,000 residents.
Transportation
Road
Intercity in the region is provided by the
I-8,
I-10
Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost cross-country highway in the American Interstate Highway System. I-10 is the fourth-longest Interstate in the United States at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. This freeway is part of the originally pl ...
,
I-17 I17 may also refer to:
* Interstate 17, an intrastate Interstate Highway located entirely within the state of Arizona, United States
* Japanese submarine ''I-17'', a B1 type submarine of the Imperial Japanese Navy
* Polikarpov I-17, a Soviet single ...
, and
I-19 freeways, as well as
US 60
U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia.
The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as Pacific Avenue, in the ...
,
SR 87,
SR 90, and
SR 77, among other surface highways.
Phoenix area arterials are set up in a grid pattern, which helps simplify transportation within the region. Tucson's streets have a similar system.
Rail
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's
Sunset Limited
The ''Sunset Limited'' is an Amtrak passenger train that for most of its history has operated between New Orleans and Los Angeles, over the nation's second transcontinental route. However, up until Hurricane Katrina in 2005, it operated betwe ...
operates three times a week, connecting
Maricopa, Arizona
Maricopa is a city in the Gila River Valley in Pinal County, Arizona, United States. With 62,720 residents as of 2021, Maricopa is the largest incorporated municipality in Pinal County
History
Maricopa has had three locations over the years: ...
and Tucson. There is no other intercity rail in the region; however a high-speed rail corridor is also being studied between Phoenix and Tucson.
Intracity rail systems include the
Valley Metro Rail
Valley Metro Rail (styled as METRO) is a light rail line serving the cities of Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa in Arizona, USA. The network, which is part of the Valley Metro public transit system, began operations on December 27, 2008. In , the sys ...
, which operates within the Phoenix metropolitan area, connecting Uptown and Downtown Phoenix with Tempe and Mesa, and Tucson's
Sun Link
Sun Link, also known as the Tucson Streetcar, is a single-line streetcar system in Tucson, Arizona, United States, that began service in July 2014. The system's route connects the Arizona Health Sciences Center (including University Medical C ...
streetcar system, which links Downtown Tucson and the Mercado district to the
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory.
T ...
.
Air
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a civil–military public airport east of downtown Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and among the largest commercial airports in th ...
and
Tucson International Airport
Tucson International Airport is a civil-military airport owned by the City of Tucson
south of downtown Tucson, in Pima County, Arizona, United States. It is the second busiest airport in Arizona, after Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airp ...
provide air transportation to the region, from both within the country and from a few foreign countries, among other smaller airports, which focus on regional air traffic from nearby. Recently,
Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, previously being a military base, has also become an option for low-cost carriers to fly into the Phoenix area as well.
US Airways
US Airways (formerly USAir) was a major United States airline that operated from 1937 until its merger with American Airlines in 2015. It was originally founded in History of aviation in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called ...
, now owned by Fort Worth company
American Airlines
American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...
, was once headquartered and based in Tempe after a reverse-merger from
America West Airlines
America West Airlines was a major American airline, founded in 1981, with service commencing in 1983, and having reached US$1 billion in annual revenue in 1989, headquartered in Tempe, Arizona. At the time of its acquisition of US Airways, Americ ...
in 2005, headquarters of which is in the Phoenix Valley. However, American Airlines maintains a strong presence in the state due to the history with US Airways.
References
{{Arizona
Geography of Arizona
Regions of Arizona
Megapolitan areas of the United States