72 Scottsdale Road/Rural Road

The earliest known routing for route 72 is from August 18, 1997. At this time, it seems like the route began in two separate places with alternating trips. One start point was at Westwood & Holmes Ave near Fiesta Mall in Mesa, traveling down Alma School Rd to Baseline Rd, then up Rural Rd. The other start point was at Rural Rd & Chandler Blvd, traveling straight up Rural Rd. All trips continued up Rural Rd to Scottsdale Rd & Princess Dr via College Ave & University Dr in Downtown Tempe ,and Los Arcos Mall, Loloma Station, and Scottsdale Airpark in Scottsdale. Some time between then and August 15, 1999, the trips to Fiesta Mall were eliminated and instead there was a small diversion created along Lakeshore Dr and Baseline Rd in Tempe. On September 30, 2002, the southern end of the route was extended to serve Chandler Fashion Center. On July 23, 2007, the northern end of the route was extended to Mayo Blvd. On January 25, 2010, select trips were extended to Thompson Peak Pkwy, then all trips were extended on July 26, 2010. The route was also adjusted in January to serve Scottsdale Park and Ride. On July 25, 2011, the route was streamlined onto Scottsdale Rd due to the closure of Loloma Station. On April 26, 2021, the deviation to Tempe Transportation Center was eliminated.