Utah transit officials are optimistic that 15-minute commuter rail service between Ogden and Provo could be available as early as 2030, as they await a final decision on a federal funding request for the project.
Utah Department of Transportation, which oversees large-scale Utah Transit Authority projects, submitted a $2.4 billion funding request to the Federal Transit Administration’s Capital Investment Grants Program for a project to double-track FrontRunner. The project is currently going through engineering reviews, said Jay Fox, UTA’s executive director.
“Certainly, we want to see it well before the Olympics because it’s a game-changer,” he said, noting that it would help better connect with its light-rail and bus networks that already offer 15-minute service.
Fox spoke about the project during “Transit Day” at the Utah Capitol, as some of the state’s top eight transit agencies gathered on Wednesday to showcase current transit benefits and future opportunities across their various networks.
FrontRunner double-tracking — increasing the number of tracks between Ogden and Provo — has been an item on many lawmakers’ minds. It would help reduce delays by removing many points where north- and south-bound trains share the same rail. It would also open the door for Sunday service.
Fox said crews can do some preliminary work now, but UDOT and UTA are awaiting the state’s federal grant request before outlining the timeline for the bulk of construction. There is no timeline for a decision to be made from the Federal Transit Administration, a UDOT spokesperson told KSL.
Big projects in the works
Most of Wednesday’s celebration on the hill focused on the benefits of transit, such as a 2023 economic value study conducted by Metro Analytics that found that every $1 invested in UTA yielded $5.11 in economic return.
It’s also generated a high impact on development value, especially through transit-oriented development near train stations. These help show lawmakers that there’s a return on their past investment.
Double-tracking FrontRunner remains perhaps the biggest transit project on the horizon, but there are a few other big items in the works.
UTA and UDOT want to add a fourth TRAX light-rail line. The proposed “orange line‚" which would run between the Salt Lake City airport and the University of Utah’s Research Park, is currently going through an environmental review, Fox said.
There’s no timeline for when that service will be available, but he would like to see it operational before the 2034 Olympics — and possibly in time for Major League Baseball.
Should Utah win its bid for an expansion team, and it’s favored by many to do so, the line would include a stop near the proposed MLB stadium site along with existing green line TRAX service. It would offer two trains between downtown and the Power District running every 15 minutes.
High Valley Transit also showed off its “Bobsled Express,” which is under construction. It’s a new bus rapid transit line that will offer faster transit access between Kimball Junction and Park City, potentially easing tourism-related traffic in the area when it debuts in 2028.
“This is a way for us to move people up and down the corridor reliably. We can scale it with the seasons; we can scale it for big events,” said Gabriel Shields, chief development officer for High Valley Transit, adding it gives plenty of time to adjust operations for the Olympics.
Creating greater connections?
Future transit opportunities could include better connections between networks, much like how High Valley Transit took over a bus service that runs from Kimball Junction and Salt Lake City. That decision has been pretty successful, and High Valley Transit is interested in increasing frequency beyond 90 minutes, Shields said.
It’s also interested in expanding operations beyond Summit and Wasatch counties, potentially expanding to other parts of the Wasatch Back and creating more services that link up with UTA in the Wasatch Front. That would require counties to pass a series of transit-related sales taxes to fund operations.
Leaders of UTA and the Cache Valley Transit District, or Connect, have a mutual interest in creating a link between the Wasatch Front and Cache Valley, too.
That said, it could be a long time before it happens. UTA has long-term plans to extend FrontRunner to Brigham City, which could be the best introduction to that, Fox said, but that’s likely decades away.
Todd Beutler, Connect’s CEO, would like to see something sooner, if possible.
“Ultimately, it comes down to funding and coordination,” he said. “We see there’s demand there, and now it’s finding the right opportunity and finding the funding source to make that happen.”
