Along its winding route, U.S. 89 once made the entrance into Salt Lake City from the north along Beck Street.

Once Wasatch Hot Springs, St. Mark's Hospital and Swede Town welcomed motorists into Utah's capital city. With the passage of time and the coming of the freeway, the area has gradually transformed."It used to be the gateway to the city. It's sad the way it has deteriorated. It is an eyesore now," said Pam Card, chairwoman of the Capitol Hill Community Council.

Today, the Children's Museum of Utah has brought new life to the former hot springs building, other businesses now occupy the former hospital, and the Swede Town neighborhood hangs on in the face of encroaching refineries and commercial development. There are plans currently under way to landscape areas along the street.

Neighbors have always had an uneasy relationship with the road and the traffic that it brings.

In 1954, the Deseret News proclaimed that the north Beck Street "bottleneck" was history with the completion of a six-lane highway that replaced an earlier and more dangerous street. The bottleneck may have disappeared for a time only to reappear in few years as more and more travelers and commuters came down the street and eventually made their way to points south up Victory Road and 300 West.

In the early '60s, contractors scraped and dynamited away gravel from Victory Road. The state wanted a four-lane road up the mountain to the state Capitol. The gravel went to build I-15, but the four-lane road never materialized when neighbors objected.

If residents along the street had any hope that the cars would take the new route after a beauty queen snipped a ribbon across a nearby section of I-15 in 1964, they were disappointed. Today, commuters from Davis County crowd the street and gush up Victory Road every weekday morning and night, sometimes with deadly results, and the state has proposed another fix at the intersection of Victory Road and Beck Street.

The Utah Department of Transportation has proposed a traffic signal and squared-off intersection they believe will help decrease accidents as well as the amount of traffic diverted through the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

However, residents aren't sure the proposal will reduce traffic on the route. They believe adding additional lanes will attract even more traffic into their residential areas. Despite protests from residents and a Salt Lake City Council member last fall, UDOT officials say the plan is still going forward.

"It's real disheartening that no matter what the neighborhood and people say, they (UDOT) totally ignore our needs and concerns. They look at everything as cars on the highway. They ignore the whole human factor," Card said.

Not all share the resident's view. Gerry Foster, an attendant at the Sinclair station at the base of Victory Road, has witnessed two serious accidents at the intersection.

"Anything they can do would make it better," he said.

Currently, a single unrestricted left-turn lane of traffic feeds from Beck Street south and east along Victory Road. The northbound lane of Victory Road feeds onto Beck Street without a stop. During peak traffic periods, both lanes have registered traffic counts and speeds that rival I-15, with deadly consequences, according to John Leonard, Utah Department of Transportation engineer.

Leonard said the residents haven't completely understood UDOT's plan, which is set to go out for bid in October and probably begin construction next spring. He said despite the increase in lanes, the proposed traffic signal should maintain about the same amount of traffic into the area. The traffic signal is apt to change motorists' minds about using the route.

"People like to keep moving. Even if it takes more time to get somewhere, there is a perception they get there faster if they are moving," said Leonard, explaining the plan, which includes three unobstructed southbound lanes on 300 West.

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For southbound Victory Road drivers there will be two left-turn lanes controlled by a signal off Beck Street. Traffic will then be directed up a double lane on Victory Road. The road will then merge into a single lane about 700 feet up the Victory Road hill.

Northbound traffic coming down Victory Road also will encounter a similar double lane, but it will be controlled at the bottom of the hill by the signal, and only right turns will be allowed. That is intended to decrease accidents that have occurred where Victory Road merges with Beck Street.

While the plan will allow about the same amount of southbound traffic during the morning rush hour, the northbound lanes will not handle the current unrestricted traffic flow in the evening traffic peak.

Leonard hopes the new configuration will persuade motorists to take alternate routes, including 300 West or 400 West.

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