Light rail has 2 a.m. trains to get party-goers home

Thousands of people will spend New Year's Eve at the Insight Bowl Block Party in downtown Tempe, and the Valley's new light rail system will work overtime to get them home safety.

Festivities along Mill Avenue start about 7 p.m. and feature three fireworks shows, a kids and family area and concert by Styx. Gates open at 5 p.m., admission is $20 at the gate or $15 for tickets available at Fry's food stores, Tempe Marketplace and Mill Avenue merchants.

Metro Light Rail, which began operating last Saturday, will run trains later than usual.

"Trains will leave the terminals -- at Main and Sycamore in Mesa and 19th Avenue and Montebello in Phoenix -- at 2 a.m.," said Metro's Hillary Foose. "They'll go eastbound and westbound, so those are your last trains. So be thinking about getting to your final destination in that two o'clock hour."

Foose added, "That's the last full trip across all 20 miles, at 2 a.m., so if you're in Tempe -- wanting to go back to downtown Phoenix -- it would be a little after that. So just be thinking about getting to where you need to go beginning around 2 a.m., and we will get you home safely."

Those two trains are the last times you can ride free. Metro will start charging fares of $1.25 a ride starting at 4 a.m. Thursday.

Light rail also is a good way to travel to this afternoon's Insight Bowl football game, between Kansas and Minnesota, at Sun Devil Stadium. Kickoff is 4 p.m.

"We have a station just west of the stadium, at Fifth Street and College," said Foose. "It's also adjacent to the new Tempe Transportation Station, so it's a very obvious station... There's also a station at Third Street and Mill we think will be very busy, as well as one at University and Rural."

As for New Year's Eve weather, News/Talk 92-3 KTAR meteorologist Ed Phillips said Arizona will have the best weather in the country. Highs in the Valley under sunny skies today will be in the 70s, although it will be sweater weather once the sun goes down.

The Minnesota Gophers and Kansas Jayhawks square off this evening in the Insight Bowl at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, an event projected to pump $62 million into the Valley's economy.

"I think this is going to be the biggest crowd we've ever had," said the bowl's Dave Tilson. "We've sold 50,000 tickets and the weather should be good."

Some tickets are still available, at prices ranging from $20 to $80, Tilson said. Game ticket stubs are good for admission to the New Year's Eve Block Party in downtown Tempe after the game.

Fans of both teams are in the Valley, Tilson said. Each school got 10,000 tickets.

"Kansas sold its allotment of tickets and bought more. Minnesota sold its allotment, so there's quite a few people traveling just for the game. It's going to be exciting."

He added, "I was just in downtown Tempe and the town was hopping. There were people everywhere, which is really exciting. That's great to see, that's what this is all about, to get people to come to downtown Tempe and see our Valley and enjoy our wonderful weather."

Tilson said, "In this economy, we certainly don't have any room to complain because we've been successful."

The previous Insight Bowl attendance record was just over 48,000, set in 2006.

Fans were doing a little trash-talking Tuesday.

"Minnesota's going to cream KU. We're going to go home victorious," said Arthur Williams of Minneapolis.

Robbie Robinson of Phoenix, who attended Kansas 40 years ago and is still a Jayhawks' fan, didn't buy that.

"KU is going to win. They have an outstanding team, a great quarterback, they've got a lot of weapons and they're hard to control," Robinson said. He predicted the Jayhawks will win 27-14.

Nancy Dancs, a Gophers' fan from Milwaukee, didn't agree with oddsmakers, who have Minnesota a 9-point underdog.

"We have a new offensive coach, and I think he's going to make the difference," Dancs said, adding that the Gophers "are fired up, they're ready to go."

Kickoff is 4 p.m.

Police warned drivers that traffic will be heavy this eevning on the Loop 202, University Drive, Mill Avenue and other Tempe streets because of the game and the Block Party. • Insight Bowl Block Party