Since light rail construction began in Tempe last year, some business owners on Terrace Drive have seen sales decline 20 to 50 percent.
As businesses on Terrace Drive from Rural Road to Apache Boulevard have struggled with lost customers and sales, Tempe and Valley Metro have tried to reduce the construction impact.
Jashim Uddin fears the loss of half of his sales since last year will drive his small grocery store out of business.
Uddin, owner of University Food Mart near Lemon Street and Terrace Drive, said light rail construction has made it difficult for customers to reach his store.
Uddin said he doesn't have the money to cover rent, taxes and other expenses and the city offers won't help him with financial assistance.
"I can get a loan from anywhere," he said. "As long as there are no customers, what is the point?"
Barricades surround the intersection of Rural Road and Terrace Drive.
Gandhi India's Cuisine, a restaurant at Rural Road and Terrace Drive, has been closed for four or five months, said Erin Seibel, business outreach coordinator for light rail's East Valley sections.
She said she didn't know if it closed because of light rail construction.
Employees of neighboring businesses said they thought Gandhi had closed because the construction drove away business.
Tempe offers a low-interest $20,000 credit line to help independently owned and operated businesses next to the rail line, said Dan Henderson, an economic development specialist for the city.
Once approved, businesses can use the loan for operational expenses such as rent and salaries, Henderson said.
"The funds have been reserved for the duration of light rail construction," he said.
Valley Metro also offers its promotional MetroMax card, which lists discounts customers can receive at particular businesses along the light rail line, Seibel said.
About 60 Tempe businesses participate in this program, said Amanda Nelson, a spokeswoman for Tempe's Transportation Department.
Valley Metro has also tried to inform businesses about the construction schedule so they can adjust to it and better inform their customers, Seibel added.
Ferah Khalid, a manager at Copper Kettle Restaurant, which serves a mix of Indian and Pakistani cuisine, said daily sales have dropped from about $500 to between $300 and $350 since construction began.
Business has slowed as nearby office workers have stayed away due to the trouble of driving to Copper Kettle, she added.
"Before that, there used to be a wait of 20, 30 minutes at lunch time," Khalid said.
Carla Kahn, community outreach coordinator for the Tempe and Mesa light rail sections, said the most disruptive part of construction is over because nearby streets have been widened and underground utilities relocated.
The 20-mile light rail system running through Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa will open in December 2008.
Seibel said it's possible sales could drop due to light rail construction, but businesses should remain positive.
"If you are whining all the time about how bad construction is, it's only going to pass onto your customers," she said.
Mark Marin, a manager at Burrito Express, located at Rural Road and Terrace Drive, said he didn't expect construction to affect his business when it opened last January.
"We thought it was going to be a goldmine, but with construction, it just dropped big time," Marin said.
Although Burrito Express has enjoyed an increase in walk-in customers since school started, this hasn't offset a 35 percent decline in business, he added.
"If things don't pick up, we're probably gone," Marin said.
Reach the reporter at: grayson.steinberg@asu.edu.
