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WFRC staff outline regional connectivity grid study, ask local feedback on draft connections
Summary
Staff described a state-funded study to identify prioritized “a‑to‑b” roadway connections across the Wasatch Front, requested local review of draft concepts and said promising projects will be screened for inclusion in future RTP updates.
The Wasatch Front Regional Council (WFRC) presented an update on a state-funded regional connectivity grid study and asked local planners to review and comment on draft project concepts intended to improve roadway, transit and active-transportation connectivity across the region.
WFRC staff said the study — funded through state legislative grants and coordinated across the four MPOs, UDOT and transit agencies — is developing candidate connections that could be advanced into the regional transportation plan (RTP) and future project prioritization processes. "We want to identify places where the existing grid could be enhanced and how that could benefit both vehicular travel and transit and active transportation," said Tim Watkins, community planner, during the presentation.
The study team described three main workstreams: (1) assessing current grid performance using travel-modeling and geospatial analyses; (2) generating potential connections (described as A‑to‑B concepts rather than final alignments); and (3) screening and prioritizing those concepts with cost, ownership and funding guidance so communities and agencies can move the higher-ranked projects into RTP and TIP processes. Watkins said the team has produced a preliminary project list and sought detailed local input to reveal fatal flaws, missing prior studies, and possible refinements.
WFRC staff emphasized that the study is not committing the region to construction but producing candidates for future prioritization: projects that score well and are feasible would become candidates for WFRC and other MPO RTP processes. "Some of these projects may be a little bit spicy, maybe a little bit challenging," Watkins said, adding the legislative mandate calls for identifying options beyond just “low-hanging fruit.”
Staff said they will send a web map and comment links to TAC members and requested community responses about local context, prior work, and any major concerns. Following local feedback, the study will screen concepts with the regional travel model, produce a ranked list, and prepare project sheets and cost/ownership guidance for the region and local agencies.
Next steps: WFRC will email the web map and comment tool to TAC members within days and schedule additional outreach later in the year as the team refines and ranks concepts.
Sources: Presentation and Q&A during the Regional Growth TAC meeting (see provenance).
