UTA to implement ‘significant' service changes. Here's what to know
'Significant' transit service updates are coming to the Wasatch Front.
Utah Transit Authority plans to add five new bus routes across Davis, Salt Lake, and Utah counties beginning as early as Sunday. The agency will also make a few large route adjustments to existing routes and expand more on-demand microtransit services. The agency is expected to add 1.1 million service miles and hundreds of new bus stops to its growing service area.
Some changes have already been implemented ahead of schedule. The new South Jordan Downtown TRAX station opened last month ahead of the Salt Lake Bees' first game in Daybreak.
A pair of new routes in Salt Lake County highlight changes coming to UTA's bus system.
Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs, in 2022, voiced his frustration about the lack of transit service in the growing region, arguing that an already worsening traffic situation in the region could become "exacerbated" without alternatives. It ignited years of discussion and planning that landed in the new service.
The new route — running every 60 minutes on weekdays — marks the beginning. The bus will connect UTA's Daybreak Parkway TRAX station at the end of the Red Line with Draper Town Center TRAX station at the end of the Blue Line via Bluffdale, Herriman and Riverton, as well as the Draper FrontRunner station along the way.
Herriman Mayor Lorin Palmer told KSL-TV last week it serves as an important "part of the infrastructure" of the growing city because "we can only build so many roads."
Meanwhile, Route 219 will also debut on Monday. The route, which will also run every 60 minutes, will connect UTA's Sandy Civic Center TRAX station along the Blue Line with Bluffdale, with stops in South Jordan and Riverton along the way.
Other new bus routes set to launch include:
Route 417: The service will connect Salt Lake City's west side with the Woods Cross FrontRunner station via stops along Redwood Road in northern Salt Lake and southern Davis counties. It will run every 30 minutes on weekdays beginning on Monday.
Route 628: This route will replace the existing Midtown Trolley, adding more regular service and paratransit service to the route linking the Layton and Clearfield FrontRunner stations in Davis County. It will run every 30 minutes on weekdays and every hour on Saturdays.
Route 823: The new service will run every hour between Provo Center Station and Spanish Fork via Springville on weekdays and on Saturdays.
New routing is planned for a handful of other routes, including the ends of long-term detours for some routes and increasing frequency at others. Minor schedule tweaks are planned for dozens of other routes.
More details can be found on UTA's website.
Meanwhile, UTA on Demand — a microtransit system UTA made permanent in southern Salt Lake County nearly four years ago — is now coming to Utah County.
Microtransit is essentially a blend between traditional bus and rideshare services. People can use an app to hail a ride from one portion of a service area to another, while the technology pairs other riders headed in a similar direction.
UTA's new West Provo/Orem service area, debuting on Monday, covers 8.6 square miles, connecting Provo's and Orem's FrontRunner stations with key destinations like the Provo Airport. Service will be available within the zone from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day from Monday through Saturday.
The agency also offers pockets of service within the west side of Salt Lake City, southern Davis County and eastern Tooele County. It recorded over 2,100 average weekday boardings at its peak last year, making it the busiest year of service it was officially added to the system in 2021.
The new service figures to help Utah's largest transit agency as it seeks to bring transportation alternatives to the growing Wasatch Front. It logged over 40 million rides last year for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, and ridership data from the first quarter of 2025 show that this year could inch the agency closer to pre-pandemic ridership levels.
Carlton Christensen, chairman of UTA's board of trustees, told reporters earlier this week that the agency is still exploring further service expansions like a fourth TRAX line, more bus rapid transit systems and upgrades to FrontRunner, following a visit from U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. All of those could increase future ridership.
'It's key to have an effective FrontRunner, TRAX (and) bus system in addition to our hard surface road area. It all comes together to accommodate the massive growth we have coming at us,' added Sen. John Curtis.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Yahoo
Plan ahead: TRAX Red Line to be rerouted during ‘MexTour' event at Rice Eccles Stadium
SALT LAKE CITY () — On Saturday, June 7, the Mexican national soccer team will be making a rare visit to the Beehive State against Switzerland at Rice Eccles Stadium. But if you were planning on making use of the TRAX's Red Line train to make it to the stadium, you'll need to adjust your travel plans. The TRAX line, which typically runs up 400 South to Rice Eccles Stadium on the University of Utah campus, will and along Main Street in downtown Salt Lake City. This temporary reroute could cause significant delays of up to 45 minutes to the commute, the University of Utah warned. 6 Utah cities ranked among the best 250 places to live in the U.S. — and Salt Lake didn't make the cut To make up for the lack of trains, UTA plans to increase services for bus routes 1, 2, and 4 to help passengers traveling to the University of Utah. Passengers will be encouraged to take the Red Line to Gallivan Plaza Station and transfer to any of the three bus lines to reach the stadium in time for the game. The Red Line closure will allow for UTA maintenance crews to perform maintenance near the Rice-Eccles Stadium station, including at the S-Curve to the University of Utah. The closure and reroute are expected to be in place until Aug. 17. However, normal services will temporarily resume over the July 4 weekend to help accommodate events on the University of Utah campus. Supreme Court allows Trump to revoke Biden's parole program; Sotomayor, Jackson issue scathing dissent Appeals court allows President Trump to continue collecting tariffs GOP runs into voter buzzsaw of criticism on Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' Disney offering Disney+, Hulu subscribers new perks, discounts CBP seizes $184,000 from Mexican man, woman trying to leave US in a Fiat Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Why UTA is drastically shifting TRAX Red Line service for most of the summer
Officials are drastically changing one of Utah Transit Authority's light-rail service lines for the next few months while it carries out a maintenance project on the tracks near the University to Utah. A project to repair infrastructure on Utah Transit Authority's TRAX Red Line was slated to begin Saturday, leading to a major shift in service. Trains that typically travel east toward the University Medical Center Station on campus will instead be rerouted to travel through downtown Salt Lake City, following the Blue Line to Salt Lake Central Station. 'The Red Line is going to be shut down basically from the Courthouse Station all the way east along (400 South), through the S-curve and then all the way up to what is currently the end of the Red Line up to the university,' said UTA spokesman Gavin Gustafson. The project calls for the replacement of 'worn-out parts' of the Red Line, including track connections, guard rails, the overhead wires that power trains and the interlocking system that helps prevent train collisions, according to the agency. Infrastructure along the section where 400 South becomes 500 South near the university tends to wear down faster because of the curves and steep grade of the S-shaped curve, Gustafson explained. 'It does go through a pretty significant amount of wear and tear, so that's a big part of what we're doing there,' he said. The project is expected to continue through mid-August, which means the reroute will remain in place for months, aside from a brief pause surrounding Independence Day. Some limited Red Line TRAX service will briefly return July 3-5 for festivities planned by the university. It won't affect the Red Line's southern route. All services between Courthouse Station and Daybreak in South Jordan will remain the same. Riders seeking to reach the university are encouraged to take UTA's 1, 2 or 4 bus routes, which they can do by a bus stop located by the corner of 200 South and Main Street, less than a block from Gallivan Plaza Station. UTA officials are urging riders to plan ahead, advising that it could lead to delays of up to 45 minutes in travel time. Both the 1 and 2 routes, which are currently being detoured because of a separate road project along 100 South near the university, reach University Medical Center Station. Route 4 also travels along most of the red line route, taking riders to places like the Salt Lake City Public Library, Trolley Square and Rice-Eccles Stadium. UTA officials said they're adding additional service through Route 4R to accommodate expected rider demand from the TRAX closure, which will run between Gallivan Plaza and Rice-Eccles Stadium. The project is scheduled to wrap up on Aug. 17, ending in time for the start of the University of Utah's fall semester. The same goes for Salt Lake City's 100 South project.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Why UTA is drastically shifting TRAX Red Line service for most of the summer
Officials are drastically changing one of Utah Transit Authority's light-rail service lines for the next few months while it carries out a maintenance project on the tracks near the University to Utah. A project to repair infrastructure on Utah Transit Authority's TRAX Red Line was slated to begin Saturday, leading to a major shift in service. Trains that typically travel east toward the University Medical Center Station on campus will instead be rerouted to travel through downtown Salt Lake City, following the Blue Line to Salt Lake Central Station. 'The Red Line is going to be shut down basically from the Courthouse Station all the way east along (400 South), through the S-curve and then all the way up to what is currently the end of the Red Line up to the university,' said UTA spokesman Gavin Gustafson. The project calls for the replacement of 'worn-out parts' of the Red Line, including track connections, guard rails, the overhead wires that power trains and the interlocking system that helps prevent train collisions, according to the agency. Infrastructure along the section where 400 South becomes 500 South near the university tends to wear down faster because of the curves and steep grade of the S-shaped curve, Gustafson explained. 'It does go through a pretty significant amount of wear and tear, so that's a big part of what we're doing there,' he said. The project is expected to continue through mid-August, which means the reroute will remain in place for months, aside from a brief pause surrounding Independence Day. Some limited Red Line TRAX service will briefly return July 3-5 for festivities planned by the university. It won't affect the Red Line's southern route. All services between Courthouse Station and Daybreak in South Jordan will remain the same. Riders seeking to reach the university are encouraged to take UTA's 1, 2 or 4 bus routes, which they can do by a bus stop located by the corner of 200 South and Main Street, less than a block from Gallivan Plaza Station. UTA officials are urging riders to plan ahead, advising that it could lead to delays of up to 45 minutes in travel time. Both the 1 and 2 routes, which are currently being detoured because of a separate road project along 100 South near the university, reach University Medical Center Station. Route 4 also travels along most of the red line route, taking riders to places like the Salt Lake City Public Library, Trolley Square and Rice-Eccles Stadium. UTA officials said they're adding additional service through Route 4R to accommodate expected rider demand from the TRAX closure, which will run between Gallivan Plaza and Rice-Eccles Stadium. The project is scheduled to wrap up on Aug. 17, ending in time for the start of the University of Utah's fall semester. The same goes for Salt Lake City's 100 South project.
