Utah's Mountainland Association of Governments (MAG) recently released TransPlan50, its regional transportation plan for urbanized Utah County.
The projects and programs proposed within the plan area are a coordinated system of capital-intensive roadway projects, transportation services, transit improvements, and pedestrian/bicycle facilities needed over the next 30 years.
Some of the major goals of TransPlan50 include updating the current regional road system to a metropolitan grid-based network; exploring additional freeways and adding capacity; creating a robust transit system; building a regionally connected active transportation system; and preserve existing assets.
According to MAG, these goals have been divided into a plan that is split into four different phases. Each phase lasts 10 years and attempts to minimize impacts on society and the environment while providing for enough capacity and transportation choices to ensure the region’s economy continues to grow.
One major project highlighted in the plan would be a highway bridge built over Utah Lake to be built after 2040. For many decades, a highway over the lake has been proposed, but the need had not been demonstrated until recently. The plan says the location of the bridge/freeway needs further study but is warranted based on projected traffic flows. One concern is that the freeway connection to I-15 not exacerbate congestion in already congested areas.
MAG serves the governments and citizens of Summit, Utah, and Wasatch Counties in Utah. As part of this association, Mountainland Metropolitan Planning Organization has the task of planning for the urban Utah County regional transportation needs.
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SOURCE: Mountainland Association of Governments
