Commission approves TIF projects but asks for more detail on S Line extension
Summary
Commissioners approved a set of Transportation Investment Fund projects but removed the Salt Lake City S Line extension from the approval and asked staff and local partners for additional engineering and terminus details before bringing it back to the commission.
The Transportation Commission approved a package of Transportation Investment Fund (TIF) projects presented at the May programming workshop, but it specifically held the S Line extension funding request for additional review.
Commissioners approved the broader set of TIF and Transportation Solutions projects presented by UDOT staff, but during discussion several commissioners expressed concern that the S Line extension — an infill extension of the existing streetcar in Sugar House — lacked ready answers on final alignment and station terminus. Commissioner Tom Jacobson and others said the project’s requested amount is large relative to the distance to be built and asked for more detail on the transit terminus and how the short extension would connect to future possible alignments to the University of Utah.
The commission approved the overall TIF package while directing staff to return with a separate, more detailed briefing and cost explanation for the S Line extension. UDOT staff said the additional funding request would extend the S Line across Highland Drive into an area being redeveloped; city staff and a Salt Lake City representative said the extension would better connect the line to nearby medical and commercial destinations but that longer extensions remain a separate planning matter.
What happens next: UDOT and Salt Lake City agreed to return to the commission with more complete alignment and cost information for the S Line extension before the commission considers that specific funding request.
