Five days a week, morning and evening, I take bus route 61 to travel between my home in Bountiful and my work in downtown Salt Lake City.
Until April 4, when Victory Road was closed for construction, the bus used Main Street in Salt Lake City, Victory Road and 1-15 from Beck Street to go to Bountiful.With the closure of Victory Road, the bus now goes up Main Street to the Capitol, then returns to North Temple, goes to Third West, then to Beck Street and finally to I-15. The bus is half full from downtown Salt Lake to the Capitol. When we arrive at the Capitol, one or two passengers disembark. In addition to increased and unnecessary pollution, it is a tremendous waste of time, money and energy to have the bus go up the hill to the Capitol and back down again for one or two passengers who could take another bus to the Capitol.
I realize there is bound to be some inconvenience while Victory Road is closed; however, just because this bus passed the Capitol on its Victory Road route does not mean that a detour must do the same. Use of our little gray cells would lead us to determine that it would be more efficient for Bus 61 not to go to the Capitol during the Victory Road construction but to go directly to North Temple - saving time, money, and energy and making a busload of people much happier.
Richard A. Manfull
Bountiful