TRAX (light rail)

UTA Transit Express (TRAX)
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Overview
Locale	Salt Lake City metropolitan area
Transit type	Light rail
Number of lines	2 operating 2 under construction 2 planned
Number of stations	28 open 13 under construction
Operation
Began operation	December 1999
Operator(s)	Utah Transit Authority
Number of vehicles	40 Siemens SD-160 LRVs 29 UTDC 77 Avanto S70 (on order)
Technical
System length	Template:Mi to km (open lines)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

TRAX (full name Transit Express, though rarely used) is a two-line light rail system in Utah's Salt Lake Valley, serving Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, Murray, Midvale and Sandy. The system is operated by the Utah Transit Authority (UTA).

Trax and neighborhood proximity map.jpg

The first line, running from downtown Salt Lake City south to Sandy, was completed in 1999. The second line from downtown to the University of Utah was completed in 2001 and extended in 2003. An extension to the Salt Lake City Intermodal Hub was completed in April 2008. Plans call for four additional TRAX lines to be finished by 2014. These lines are planned to run to the suburbs of West Valley City, South Jordan, and Draper, as well as to Salt Lake City International Airport. On December 21, 2006, the Salt Lake County Council voted to impose a sales tax increase that would pay for all 4 of the proposed TRAX lines. A letter of intent signed with the Federal Transit Administration on September 24, 2007 secured the remaining funding for the light rail lines.

Despite initial skepticism, TRAX now enjoys widespread support. Both the University Line and its extension to the University Medical Center were completed ahead of schedule. Additional expansions have been proposed for the near future, all four of which have been approved and funded. A daily ridership of 15,000 was expected for the initial 15 mile (24 km) line in 1999. Soon after, the expanded system of 17.5 miles (28.2 km) served an estimated 60,000 passengers each day. In the fall of 2005, the large number of passengers caused trains' suspensions to drop, preventing doors from closing properly; the problem has since been corrected. An improved system of counting introduced in 2007 that used infrared sensors to track body heat showed that 60,000 was an overestimation, and the numbers were revised to approximately 40,000.

History

UTA TRAX
Green Line Airport  704  Salt Lake City International Airport 1940 W North Temple Power  750  FrontRunner to Ogden Fairpark Jackson/Euclid North Temple Bridge /Guadalupe California Zephyr to Emeryville, California Red Line Planetarium  702†  703  University Medical Center Old GreekTown Fort Douglas Salt Lake Central  701  702†  University South Campus Arena Stadium Temple Square 900 East City Center Trolley Gallivan Plaza Library  Free Fare Zone  Courthouse 600 South 900 South Ballpark Central Pointe Green Line S Line to Fairmont in Sugar House River Trail Millcreek Redwood Junction Meadowbrook Decker Lake Murray North West Valley Central  704  Murray Central Fashion Place West Red Line Bingham Junction Blue Line Historic Gardner Midvale Fort Union West Jordan City Center Midvale Center 2700 W Sugar Factory Rd Historic Sandy Jordan Valley Sandy Expo 4800 W Old Bingham Hwy Sandy Civic Center 5600 W Old Bingham Hwy Crescent View South Jordan Parkway Kimballs Lane Daybreak Parkway  703   701  Draper Town Center California Zephyr to Chicago, Illinois  750  FrontRunner to Provo †  702  no longer operates

Light rail in the Salt Lake Valley was first seriously discussed in the late 1980s to provide an alternative to traffic congestion on I-15, but the idea was met with much criticism. On October 10, 1988, Congress approved $5 million in funds to preserve land along the proposed light rail corridor. However, funding for the light rail line itself remained uncertain. After Salt Lake City won the bid for the 2002 Winter Olympics in 1995, UTA leveraged the city's host status to accelerate the process of obtaining funding through the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Construction began in 1997, but the groundbreaking event was marred by protesters, who insisted that light rail would be both dangerous and a waste of money. Public opinion remained divided, and businesses on Main Street in downtown Salt Lake City suffered during the construction period.

Station names

On December 13, 2006 , the UTA Board of Trustees voted to change the name of the Delta Center Station to "Arena" in response to the renaming of the nearby indoor arena to EnergySolutions Arena.

Expansion

After the north-south line opened in late 1999 with sixteen stations, ridership expectations were quickly met. To the surprise of many, the system was enthusiastically embraced by valley residents and once-skeptical communities soon began clamoring for extensions.

Completed expansion projects

University Line

Funding for the University Line to Rice-Eccles Stadium allowed it to be completed in 2001 with four new stations, ahead of schedule and in advance of the Olympics. An extension to the University Medical Center that added three new stations was completed on September 29, 2003, fifteen months ahead of schedule.

Infill stations

An infill station at 900 South in Salt Lake City was constructed in 2005, and a second infill station, at 9400 South in Sandy, opened in August 2006.

Extension to Salt Lake Central Station

On February 23, 2006, plans for extending the main line westward to the Salt Lake City Intermodal Hub near the Gateway District was approved. Two stations were built near the The Gateway shopping district, as well as one at the Salt Lake Central Station (Intermodal Hub) and opened in April 2008, bringing the total number of stations to 28.

Expansion projects currently under construction

Mid-Jordan Line

On July 7, 2005, the Mid-Jordan Line was approved, and construction began on May 15, 2008. It is expected to be completed in 2011. This line will branch off from the Sandy Line in Murray, crossing into Midvale, West Jordan, and ending at the Daybreak Community in South Jordan. UTA explored the option of a street-running route through historic Midvale and serving the Jordan Landing development before reaching the Daybreak Community; however, a route using an existing rail corridor was selected, which has a lower cost and allows a simpler environmental review and construction process. Current plans call for nine new stations on the line.

West Valley City Line

On June 18, 2008, UTA began construction on a line to a new West Valley City Intermodal hub, adding four stations to TRAX, splitting off from the Central Pointe station. The line is expected to open by 2011. The line will serve the Chesterfield and Decker Lake areas before stopping at the E Center and terminating at an intermodal hub in West Valley City.

Planned expansion projects

On November 14, 2006, the Draper City Council approved the TRAX extension into that city, and was later approved by the Utah Supreme Court on July 12, 2008.

An extension to the Salt Lake International Airport is expected to begin construction in late 2008.

A TRAX spur into the Salt Lake City neighborhood of Sugar House has been contemplated. A series of community meetings held in Sugar House as part of a larger transit study undertaken by UTA presented several transit alternatives to the neighborhood, including bus rapid transit, light rail, and an old-fashioned streetcar either along 2100 South or along an existing rail corridor running along approximately 2200 South from the existing TRAX station to 1100 East, very near the neighborhood center and primary commercial district of the Sugar House neighborhood. The streetcar seemed to be the preferred alternative.

Additional vehicle purchase

In order to support planned TRAX expansion, UTA has ordered 77 Avanto light rail vehicles from Siemens AG. It is the company's largest-ever light rail contract.

Funding

On September 21, 2006, a property tax hike proposal was replaced with a general transportation quarter-cent sales tax hike that was voted on and approved on November 7 of that year. On December 21, 2006, the Salt Lake County Council created a priority list for the sales tax, saying that TRAX and commuter rail should take priority. A letter of intent signed with the Federal Transit Administration on September 24, 2007 secured the remaining $500 million in funding for the light rail lines.

Lines and stations

Main articles: Sandy/Salt Lake Line, University Line, Mid-Jordan Line, and West Valley Line

TRAX lines

	Line Name	Opened	Stations	Length	Begins—Ends
	Sandy—Salt Lake Line	1999	21	Template:Mi to km	Downtown—Sandy (Central Station → Sandy Civic Center)
	University Line	2001	14	Template:Mi to km	Downtown—University Medical Center (Central Station → Medical Center)
	Mid-Jordan Line	Planned 2011	10	Template:Mi to km	Murray—Daybreak (Fashion Place West → Daybreak South)
	West Valley Line	Planned 2011–2015	5		Salt Lake City—West Valley City (Central Pointe → West Valley City Center)

The University line also runs a few trains in the AM commute and the PM commute to the Sandy Civic Center station, following the routing of the Sandy/Salt Lake line, by turning towards Courthouse instead of Gallivan Plaza.

See also

• List of rapid transit systems
• Transportation in Salt Lake City
• UTA TRAX Sandy/Salt Lake Line
• UTA TRAX University Line
• FrontRunner - the recently opened commuter rail system

External links

• Utah Transit Authority
• Utah Rails, timeline of UTA TRAX project