Heavy traffic is a way of life in Uptown.

Finding a solution to traffic congestion, however, is not an easy job, according to Sedona Police Department Police Chief Ray Cota. Sedona police conducted three studies over the last six months in Uptown. The first was conducted in December of last year, while the second was held in July during the National Day of the Cowboy event. Police officers conducted their third evaluation in August.

While the item was not on the Sedona City Council Nov. 22 agenda for council action, it may return when the city begins planning its budget for next year.

Cota recommended developing part-time police positions to handle parking and traffic control issues, and assist full-time officers.

“It’s really a lot more cost-effective,” Cota said. “We can also create a lot more flexibility in terms of staffing when we need to staff. We can gear up, we can gear down. I think it also provides a tremendous amount of response to the community needs that are already being asked of us.

“Not only that, but there isn’t anything special that has to be created within the police department to make this a viable option. We have the infrastructure in terms of communication; we have the infrastructure in terms of people being readily available to supervise such a level of personnel.”

Cota said traffic in Uptown has been a concern for residents and the business community for a number of years.

“I think we just wanted to take a fresh look, go back out there, test some of the previous assumptions and implement a little problem solving and maybe come up with something that would help us in future endeavors,” Cota said.

Observing vehicles heading out of Oak Creek Canyon through Uptown, managing pedestrian traffic and restricting left-hand turns were among the tests conducted for the survey.

During the August evaluation, officers simply managed the pedestrian crossing areas, Cota said. Volunteers would be an important facet in traffic control in Uptown, though their abilities are limited. Controlling Uptown traffic can likely be handled in a more comprehensive fashion.

“We have citywide traffic [and] pedestrian control issues. We need parking enforcement throughout our community,” Cota said. “We have accidents that occur all over the place that need control. We have special events that occur in the city on a regular basis.”

Cota said he believes other public concerns also need to be addressed when it comes to the roles his full-time staff plays in the community, citing examples like code enforcement, animal control and other matters. He added comprehensive parking plan has been discussed for the city’s capital improvement projects.

Sedona Mayor Rob Adams suggested diverting traffic as a possible way to alleviate congestion.

“It seems to me part of the solution is encouraging people not to get on [State Route] 89A through the canyon in the first place and suggesting they go down [State Route] 179,” Adams said.

A long-term solution, he added, might be to create a possible bypass past the public park and onto Jordan Road.

Councilman Mike Ward said it would be difficult to alleviate congestion on busy days in Uptown, though he endorsed the idea of using police in the area.

“I think we have to recognize that what we have in Uptown is what it is, and we made it that way. We decided that we were going to take it back and keep parking on the street for a whole variety of reasons. We also rejected, some time ago, having additional parking lots because it just got to be controversial in the Uptown area,” Ward said.