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..... The opinions expressed in these articles and features are those of their author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of McANA or the opinion of its Directors or Officers. |
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Giddiup:
Urban Utahns Wild About Riding Iron Horses (part three) As expansion is planned, combinations of light rail and commuter trains are needed both north and south along the valley. UTA purchased 175 miles of Union Pacific Railroad corridors between Payson, 60 miles south, and Brigham City, some 55 miles north. At $185-million, it is called the largest geographic land acquisition made by a transit agency in the U.S. It preserves valuable rail corridors for commuter lines. The UTA system has a budget of $214,585,473, with most of its funds, almost $100 million, from portions of a local option 6.6% sales tax. There is no state support for UTA. Farebox revenue is only $15 million with a basic fare of $1.25. Free bus and TRAX service is provided in downtown Salt Lake City from the State Capitol to 500 South, some 38 city blocks. Among other
services that UTA boasts: A vanpool program allows companies or groups to lease vans from UTA for carpooling. Insurance is paid by UTA for an additional cost, and lease rates depend on the number of miles traveled per month. A special feature is “guaranteed rides home” by taxi or shuttle service for emergencies or unexpected changes of schedules by riders. UTA, in cooperation with local governments, also is planning an intermodal transportation hub just west of downtown that will upgrade a declining area and provide a bus, Amtrak and TRAX center. An intermodal station just opened in Ogden, 35 miles north. The Olympics gave Salt Lake a vast amount of experience in moving people. Through cooperation of other transit systems, 905 buses, 62 light-rail cars and 1,000 additional on-loan operators moved 4-million riders around the Wasatch Front during the 17 days of the competitions. The public system was so successful, through park and ride lots, that city traffic was hardly affected, according to Inglish. Inglish has these observations for Indy or any other city that needs improved public transportation: “Preserve your main rail station,” as Denver and St. Louis have done. Salt Lake did not and now the intermodal center has to be built just south of the old Union Pacific station, now a commercial center. He says that planners should never compete with the automobile, but “think of all transportation that is not single occupancy. There are huge risks, but put it on the ground and it will prove itself.” “Also, pick your market, and serve it well” he says. “Think about educational passes instead of automobiles.” He notes that UTA convinced the landlocked and traffic-choked University of Utah to issue UTA system passes to all students, saving the university costs of parking garages. Now many parking lots at the university are never full. The university now pays UTA $1.6-million a year and 6,000 parking spaces are out of service. The university accounts for 20 percent of UTA’s ridership, up from 5 percent before the pass arrangement. The same ed-pass program also exists for high schools, and 60-70 percent of the employees of eligible downtown businesses are involved in a similar plan, called eco-passes, for their employees. The LDS Church also offers eco-passes to about 60 percent of its estimated 15,000 downtown employees. Discounted passes are offered to disabled. Fully 100 percent of buses are lift or ramp-equipped and disabled customers can ride them, paring the estimated $30 per passenger cost for paratransit buses to $3 per passenger on regular buses and TRAX. The UTA plan has attracted developers to plan housing along transit routes. Fannie Mae, the government loan agency, offers increased loan capabilities to developers who locate within a half mile of a bus line or TRAX station. send comments to webmaster@mcanaindy.org |
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2003
