Legacy Parkway study proposes one added lane each way; two noise walls proposed for Foxborough

Eric Chasten, project manager for the Legacy Parkway study, said the team is proposing to add one lane in each direction on Legacy Parkway from Farmington to the connection with I‑215 and that construction could begin in 2026 pending environmental approval. "We are proposing to add 1 lane to Legacy Parkway in each direction from Farmington on the North to the connection with I 215 on the South," Chasten said during a study presentation.

Chasten said the lanes would be added toward the center of the existing roadway so the current roadway footprint would remain the same and no additional property purchases would be required. He added the existing multiuse trail would remain unchanged and the study assesses environmental, engineering and community impacts in a drafted State Environmental Study, or SES.

The SES frames the project purpose as improving travel times and mobility in Davis County and as part of a broader package of roadway, transit, trail and active-transportation improvements designed to meet travel demand through 2050. Chasten said the project would provide an alternate route during construction on I‑15 and that the Legacy improvements could save the state and taxpayers an estimated $200,000,000 and reduce the I‑15 construction schedule by about a year.

The study team measured current corridor conditions using standard traffic-grade categories and presented projections showing much of the corridor would operate at failing levels by 2050 if no improvements are made. To address that, the SES proposes adding a northbound and a southbound lane. The team expects to finalize the SES after the public comment period and then, "pending environmental approval, select a contractor this winter and move to construction early next year," Chasten said. He said, "we would be done by the 2026 if all goes to plan," adding the team believes the work can be completed in one construction season.

Noise and noise mitigation were highlighted as topics likely to draw public interest. Chasten said the analysis identified some locations where noise would increase slightly and where mitigation could be feasible. "We are proposing 2 new noise walls," he said, adding those two recommended walls are along the Foxborough development in Woods Cross. He explained that Utah's noise-wall policy requires a determination of feasibility and reasonableness and a property-owner balloting process: property owners and residents directly adjacent to a proposed wall or those who would benefit must be balloted; at least 75% of ballots must be returned and at least 75% of returned ballots must favor the wall for it to be included in the project. Chasten said four other locations were studied but did not meet the policy requirements.

The project team is soliciting public input during a comment period that closes on October 10 and at a public meeting on September 24. "The comment period closes on October 10," Chasten said. The study website and provided QR codes list ways to submit comments by phone, email, mail or online. The presentation directed interested people to chapter 3 of the SES for resource-specific analyses and to section 3.4 for the noise analysis and balloting details.

No formal decisions or votes were taken at the presentation; the team described next steps as finalizing the SES, seeking environmental approval, selecting a contractor and moving to construction if approvals permit. The presentation also noted the analysis considers the upcoming I‑15 improvements from Farmington to Salt Lake City and treats Legacy improvements as one piece of managing traffic during those works.

For more information, the study website provides the SES, comment instructions and a sign-up for email updates.