Utah’s FrontRunner transit system would receive more than $315 million in federal funding in the Department of Transportation's (DOT) proposed spending plan.
"In Utah, we're recommending funding that will increase the speed, reliability & frequency of commuter rail service and will bring Bus Rapid Transit to Taylorsville, Murray & West Valley City,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Twitter last week.
The Utah funding plan is included in Buttigieg's spending recommendation that would pump $4.45 billion into 18 large transit projects in 11 states. In Utah, the FrontRunner Strategic Double Track project would receive $316.8 million to upgrade sections of the current FrontRunner system and to buy new train sets in order to increase capacity, the DOJ news release reports.
Utah FrontRunner transit service would receive $136.8 million in the proposed DOT spending plan.
| AnErrantKnight/Wikimedia Commons
The Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) and Utah Transit Authority (UTA) outlined plans to double-track additional sections of the FrontRunner Commuter Rail Line, purchase 10 trainsets, and improve signals to increase capacity and service frequency. The upgrades will improve travel options in the area between Ogden, Salt Lake City and Provo, which are physically constrained by the Wasatch Mountains and Utah Lake and Great Salt Lake, according to UTA.
"The FrontRunner Forward Program, in partnership with the Utah Department of Transportation, is analyzing the potential locations of these double track segments throughout the existing FrontRunner corridor to increase speed, reliability, and frequency of the existing FrontRunner service," the UTA states in on its website.
The project entered Core Capacity Project Development in October 2022, and UDOT anticipates receiving a Full Funding Grant Agreement in September 2024 and opening for revenue service in late 2028.
"FrontRunner Forward’s ultimate goal is to provide a convenient alternative to driving, leading to fewer cars on the road, less pollution, and cleaner air," the UDOT states. "This is a goal that requires the participation of many partners, including the public."
