Sugar House Trolley Gets the Nod in Salt Lake

The Sugar House Trolley in Salt Lake will most likely be constructed after receiving a 5-0 vote at council. It's an interesting addition to the TRAX expansion and isn't included in the 70 miles in 7 years Frontlines plan that TRAX is working on.

The cool part will be that it'll be a streetcar in its own ROW with a hike and bike trail along side. Below are pictures of the corridor.


My only question is whether they will allow the streetcars to run on the TRAX ROW towards West Valley or up to downtown Salt Lake. They should be able to operate them that way, but we'll see what happens. If I were a TOD developer, I would hop on that junction where the three lines meet.

In other Salt Lake news, an article in the Tribune has an interesting take on how the government can help the New West prosper. I think the New West is already taking steps to do remarkable things, but the following was interesting.

Brookings suggests that the federal government can help by providing better data and modeling on climate change, water and energy issues. We agree. Increased federal investment in public transportation would help, too. So would a national energy policy that reduces vehicle emissions.

Much like other types of research, the government can help lead the way on sustainability efforts.