Quote:
Originally Posted by 202_Cyclist
"The argument for light rail becomes even more compelling when we look at successful implementations such as the one in Salt Lake City, Utah. The initial phase of its TRAX system, spanning roughly 15 miles from Sandy to Downtown Salt Lake, cost a mere $312 million. Salt Lake City has roughly less than one-third (31 percent) of the population of Las Vegas and was able to mark 1 million riders just two years into operation, and increase to 10 times that amount a year later..." https://thenevadaindependent.com/art...s-vegas-valley
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Worth noting that the linked article compares only the populations within the incorporated city limits of Las Vegas and SLC, which are about 635k and 199k, respectively.
A fairer comparison would acknowledge all of Clark County, NV's 2.2 million people compared with UT's eight-county Wasatch Front metropolitan area, population 2.6 million.
TRAX serves only Salt Lake County, population 1.1 million, and the four most urbanized counties of the Wasatch Front are also served by the UTA heavy passenger rail FrontRunner.
Given Utah's historic position as a rail hub and the fact that it has a linear string of communities that were established long before cars were Americans' preferred mode of transportation, it's hardly surprising that it currently has more rail options than Vegas, which didn't even start developing into a major metropolis until the postwar heyday of American car culture.
Las Vegans would absolutely benefit from more and better transit options, but I think that sort of city-vs.-city comparison isn't going to win the argument for them.