Salt Lake Transit News Thread

[arkhitektor]

Originally Posted by SLCrising

Hey everyone, not sure if it has been mentioned or not, but wanted to remind you that the MAX service, Utah's first BRT starts soon. It will go down 35th South in the WVC area and connect with TRAX. Does anyone have any comments on this, I think it's huge. If this is successful I think it will take off in other areas, like on 7th East, and perhaps 21st South. I'd like to see it in areas that are not currently served by rail to enhance the accessibility.

Since State Street is quite a major artery, seems like it would be natural to have MAX there as well. I think that would be a major enhancement.

Go to the UTA site, they have a banner on MAX and let us all know what you think about this, I think it's great.

I think this will be great. I actually saw one of these on 3500 S the other day doing some training, its very sleek looking, as are the shelters at the stops. Hopefully this will help attract more riders who normally wouldn't be willing to ride a bus. I especially like that you buy tickets at the station, similar to TRAX, this, combined with the limited stops and signal proirity, should make it faster and far more appealing than the regular bus. I cannot recount how many times I've been late getting somewhere on a bus, getting more and more frusterated as the things stops every 200 feet and waiting as old ladies slowly pay their fare one nickel at a time.

[SLC Projects]

Originally Posted by delts145

Airline may start treating passengers 'like freight'

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700232318,00.html



John Clark


American Airlines passenger checks in seven pieces of luggage at a counter. The airline will begin charging $15 for the first checked bag starting June 15. (Paul Sakuma, Associated Press)

.

That is so stupid. Damn gas prices is screwing up everything.

[RFPCME]

Originally Posted by delts145

This is a huge step in the right direction SLCrising. The BRT system makes it so much more attractive for commuters. In L.A. people love them, particularly in a city situation with a lot of traffic signals. It's even a double whammy when you have this and the bus is also a clean CNG burner.

Delts145: I love mass transit systems. But I am a fraud. I normally ride mass transit in other cities, rather than the MARTA system in Atlanta, which is the closest mass transit system to where I live. For instance, I made a point to drive to Ogden from where I was staying in Layton last week, just so I could take FrontRunner into DT SLC to meet my kids for dinner.

If it is going to cost me another 15 to 30 minutes in travel time to use the MARTA system, I avoid it, ignoring the fact that the extra 15 or 30 minutes the travel takes me could be used productively. I also forget about the many times I have been caught in freeway jams in Atlanta and have missed meetings all together. I also forget about the additional expenses of fuel, parking, depreciation, et cetera for driving my car, as well as the additional brain damage I have to endure from driving.

It's really a no-brainer. I drive to the airport, park my car in long-term parking (which at $10 a day is far cheaper than DT or Mid-town or Buckhead parking), hop the terminal shuttles (which run far more frequently than the shuttles at SLC Int.), get off at the Marta station, and I am in DT or Mid-town in 15 minutes. No fuss, no muss.

The trip to Utah last week was really an eye-opener for me. If I go the extra mile to use mass transit in a foreign city, why aren't I using it more at home? I think it is a mindset. I don't plan well enough to make better use of mass transit and, by doing so, better use of my day. My short-term thinking is costing me more in the long run, in terms of money, frustration, productivity, as well as contributing to environmental decay and playing into the hands of the oil barons.

I believe many Utahans have the right mindset. They are beginning to look beyond short-term gains in travel efficiency toward longer, more important considerations, which is why I think mass transit is exploding in Utah.

Utah has a rap of being an ultra-conservative state, which in many ways it is. But Utahans also have an enormous amount of common sense--they generally know what makes sense and what does not. There are many reasons why I chose not to live in Utah any more, but the lack of common sense of the populace and the commitment to sound ideas are NOT two of them.

[RFPCME]

Originally Posted by delts145

Given the discussion above, I thought this was interesting. This is from a thread created recently over on the Transportation section of the SkyscraperPage Forum

Delts145: The maglev project between Vegas and Anaheim is really interesting to me. Not because I think it will ever be built but because I wonder what is the REAL reason behind the appropriation of $45M to do an initial EIS on a small segment of the proposed project.

I had to read-up on maglev's to get an idea if they are feasible over such a distance. They aren't...too much technology to be worked out and too many environmental impacts. So what are the politicians truly up to?

Sen. Harry Reid (who is a pretty shrewd customer) and company might be using the maglev notion to pave the way for a conventional high-speed rail link between Las Vegas and Anaheim, which makes a lot of sense. California appears opposed to the link, thinking all it would do is take money out of Southern California and place it in Vegas. However, California might buy into the idea if it were couched in the notion of a non-fossil-fuel-burning, environmentally friendly (which it wouldn't be), mass transit system.

The whole scheme appears like politics at its best...doing the right thing for the wrong reasons. It also sounds like Sen. Reid is taking advantage of an idea I first heard from a colleague of mine many years ago: "There are NO grown-ups in Southern California."

[delts145]

Downtown in Motion is almost ready to roll

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700234081,00.html

Plans to shape downtown Salt Lake City's transportation future have been in motion for about four years.
Today, those plans are just a few green lights away from being put into effect.

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[delts145]

Oil shale in Utah, Gearing up for production?

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700233889,00.html

Petroleo Brasileiro SA, Mitsui & Co. and Oil Shale Exploration Co. may produce shale oil in Utah for $45 to $50 a barrel as early as 2013, said Demarco Epifanio, the Petrobras executive responsible for the project.
A viability study for the project will take a year and, if positive, the companies will build a shale-oil plant in Utah in 2010 and start production between 2013 and 2015, Epifanio said Wednesday in an interview.

[Future Mayor]

That is very interesting. They conducted a study for three possible trax extention options and after how much money they came up with the same proposal I came up with and I didn't even charge them any money. 400 S extension from the U line to the hub and an extension from the 700 S turn west to 400 W and up to Gateway.

I think I should sue and say they stole my idea. It's several pages back on this exact forum.

I'm kidding around. I am glad to see that they are thinking about those extensions in the future. In my opinion the 200 S trax extension was a really dumb option, but they did need to explore more than one option as to not make the results seem biased basses on only one study.

I like the ideas that they have, SLC is going to be a very different city, but still a great city, in 20 years.

[delts145]

Originally Posted by Scraperdude801

Airport Trax line goes forward

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=3516287

I can't wait to see the development that will unfold along No. Temple as a result of TRAX. That street is a 'gold mine' waiting to happen. Another exciting part will be the newly remodeled ramp and connection to 4th West.

..

[SLC Projects]

Finally a Trax line to the Airport!


Deal signed for TRAX extension line to airport
June 12th, 2008 @ 12:25pm

Nicole Gonzales and Tom Callan reporting

Travelers will soon have an easier way to get the airport now that the TRAX airport extension line is going to be a reality.

Today, Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker and Utah Transit Authority(UTA) officials signed an agreement moving plans forward.

This agreement has been a long time coming. It seems like we've been discussing the possibility of TRAX going to the airport for years. And now the details are finally being worked out, and travelers are really going to benefit.

Mike Allegra, assistant general manager for UTA, says, "This is the number-one line that everybody, when we've polled, has been interested in having. So we expect it to be wonderfully successful. We're very pleased that the line will actually get to the airport terminal. It will take patrons right to the terminal. You can walk off the train and get into the terminal." It's estimated that 10,000 people a day will hop TRAX downtown for the trip to the airport.

This agreement initiates the design and construction of the line. It calls for UTA to build the extension in exchange for Salt Lake City granting it the use of city streets and property. The extension is a $300-million project. Salt Lake City will pay UTA up to $35 million for the project. Construction will begin in the fall and is expected to be completed in three or four years.

The proposed stations along North Temple would be at 800 West, Utah State Fairgrounds, Cornell Street, Winifred Street and Terminal One at Salt Lake International Airport.

Becker says North Temple will look completely different with several bike lanes, the light rail and more traffic accommodations.

Mostly he's excited for the economic benefits. Becker says, "It will be, I think, a real boon in terms of economic development opportunities, both commercial and residential, and otherwise along North Temple through the west side of Salt Lake City."

This airport line is a part of UTA's FrontLines 2015 projects, which include TRAX lines going to Draper, Jordan, West Valley and a FrontRunner train to Provo.




This is great news for me.

[Makid]

^^^

This is great news. From what has been previously reported by the end of the year we will have the Jordan line, the West Valley City line and the Airport extension under construction.

Early next year we should have Frontrunner south to Provo started also. For some reason, I think that all of the lines excluding Draper will be done by 2013. The Draper line is probably going to be finished by 2014. That would put them well ahead of the 2015 timeframe

[RFPCME]

Originally Posted by delts145

I can't wait to see the development that will unfold along No. Temple as a result of TRAX. That street is a 'gold mine' waiting to happen. Another exciting part will be the newly remodeled ramp and connection to 4th West.

..

Delts: You cannot wait for the development along North Temple because of the new TRAX extension. I cannot wait so I can climb off a plane, hop on TRAX, stay downtown, then commute on FrontRunner either North or South to do business. I will be a wonderful thing!

[wrendog]

I hope they have to foresight to build the Trax stations at the airport so as to fit with the new terminal to be built.

[delts145]

'North Temple Line' moves Forward

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700234411,00.html

Its destination is Salt Lake City International Airport, but Luke Garrott prefers to call it the "North Temple line."

After all, construction of a new light-rail line is not just about getting people to and from the airport, the Salt Lake City councilman said. It's also about neighborhood building on the city's west side.

"We want to make the North Temple line as neighborhood-friendly and as much of a positive catalyst for the city as possible," Garrott said. "It's a great opportunity."

..." Over the next seven years, UTA is committed to build 70 new miles of light- and commuter-rail lines, pushing its statewide total to 150 miles, he said.

..."This is a big piece of a very large transit system that UTA has been developing at an incredible rate up and down the Wasatch Front," Mayor Becker said

[delts145]

6 mile stretch of 1300 East to get major redo - Set for December 2009, the project will span from Draper to Midvale

http://www.sltrib.com/midvalley/ci_9565330

...The Utah Department of Transportation is about to rip a couple of lanes out at a time not just to repave it but to add landscaped medians for safety and sidewalks and privacy walks for beautification. Construction begins in late August or September.

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[SLC Projects]

I notice Udot has done the same thing with State Street in Sandy from 10600 South to 9000 South. I really like how they did some landscaping by planting some trees in the middle of state street.

[NYC Rick]

Originally Posted by wrendog

I hope they have to foresight to build the Trax stations at the airport so as to fit with the new terminal to be built.

I think it was about 10 years ago when the Tribune had a picture of a very cool airport design. Very progressive with the same split terminals with an underground subway type link.

Aside from the fact that SLC deserves that type of terminal and the fact that everyone would love to see it...does SLC really need a new terminal?

Yes the current one is just OK...barely OK (aside from cool artwork on the corridor walls) but I would like to hear legitimate reasons on why SLC needs a new terminal.

The only reason that I see is that it is just going to get more and more expensive to build one so why not build it now.

I am in cool airports around the world more than most people (this is not a statement of how cool I am more than it just comes with the territory of my work) Most terminals are jam packed with people. Maybe it is because of the times I go to SLC but I have never seen it jam packed. I have seen it crowded but not overly so.

What are some of the legitimate reasons for a new terminal?

[arkhitektor]

Originally Posted by NYC Rick

I think it was about 10 years ago when the Tribune had a picture of a very cool airport design. Very progressive with the same split terminals with an underground subway type link.

Aside from the fact that SLC deserves that type of terminal and the fact that everyone would love to see it...does SLC really need a new terminal?

Yes the current one is just OK...barely OK (aside from cool artwork on the corridor walls) but I would like to hear legitimate reasons on why SLC needs a new terminal.

The only reason that I see is that it is just going to get more and more expensive to build one so why not build it now.

I am in cool airports around the world more than most people (this is not a statement of how cool I am more than it just comes with the territory of my work) Most terminals are jam packed with people. Maybe it is because of the times I go to SLC but I have never seen it jam packed. I have seen it crowded but not overly so.

What are some of the legitimate reasons for a new terminal?

I was at the Airport yesterday and thought the same thing. Yeah, a sparkling, brand new airport would be nice, but the current one isn't that bad. Given the current state of the airline industry, I just don't see it happening soon. With all of the small upgrades that have been completed recently, from terminal renovations to parking, street and sign improvements, the airport is looking nice as is.

[urbanboy]

Well, I think we should be proactive on this one, not reactive. Salt Lake City's future looks bright. I'm sure there are some projections that justify a new airport.

[WASDEN]

Do any of you guys know what alignment they chose for the North Temple TRAX line down town? Did they decide for sure on the 400 West alignment? Mostly I want to know if they're going to rebuild the North Temple viaduct.

[Makid]

From the Deseret News article

The mayor also announced plans to re-create North Temple as a "grand boulevard," a makeover that will feature four lanes with the TRAX line running down the center, a "refinished" viaduct, the addition of two bicycle lanes in each direction and new landscaping features.

It doesn't state really one way or the other but this is the only article that mentioned the viaduct. I don't think the viaduct will be replaced without money from the state.