UDOT/UTA present FrontRunner 2X station plan for south Draper–Bluffdale corridor

UDOT and the Utah Transit Authority briefed the Bluffdale City Council on Nov. 12 about the FrontRunner 2X program and a proposed station in the South‑of‑Draper double‑tracking segment near Bluffdale. The agencies said the program is intended to increase capacity and frequency on the FrontRunner commuter rail line — moving service from roughly every 30 minutes to 15 minutes during peak periods — and to relieve congestion on I‑15.

A UDOT representative said the FrontRunner corridor is at high utilization: "in the peak hour, peak direction, FrontRunner is at 90% seated capacity," and that the 2X project combines double tracking, new vehicles and signaling upgrades to allow shorter headways. The proposed Bluffdale‑area station would sit on the east side of Union Pacific tracks; staff presented a conceptual island platform with a pedestrian bridge across the UP right‑of‑way to reach the platform.

Officials said most environmental reviews required by the Federal Transit Administration are complete and that the project is moving into final design under a progressive design‑build contract. UDOT reported it has submitted FTA funding applications and cited the agency’s Core Capacity Program as the federal funding pathway. Early work items include boxing a canal culvert and acquiring limited property; UDOT said the only permanent land acquisition at Philip Gates Memorial Park is approximately 0.11 acres and that all required restoration of parking and landscaping would be paid by the project.

Council members and nearby residents pressed staff on noise and vibration. UDOT and its consultants said FTA‑prescribed noise and vibration modeling concluded no mitigation (such as a highway‑style noise wall) is required for this segment, noting Union Pacific freight movements are the dominant existing source. Engineers showed typical cross‑sections and said closest houses to the proposed track alignment are roughly 80–125 feet away; John Boutnob, a project engineer, described platform elevations, spans, and the bridge geometry.

On station aesthetics and privacy, staff said the base concept will include landscape and irrigation and that planted conifers were proposed to provide a visual screen over time; UDOT said tree installation would include an establishment warranty and that ongoing maintenance responsibility would shift to the city after establishment. UDOT shared rough cost ranges for more substantial privacy/noise walls (about $1.5 million for a shorter 900‑foot varied wall up to $3.5–4.5 million for continuous 2,500‑foot concrete wall), and said such walls are typically provided only when a formal noise standard triggers mitigation.

UDOT described next steps: finalize an architect and design team, continue Union Pacific coordination (a draft overhead crossing approval is at roughly 30%), finalize agreements with Salt Lake City Public Utilities for canal work, and schedule additional neighborhood cottage meetings. Staff told the council the larger double‑tracking program includes 11 sections of new double track, additional vehicles, and a maintenance facility design near Warm Springs in Salt Lake; if key approvals and funding materialize, the South‑of‑Draper improvements could be built in the latter half of the decade with 2030 cited as a plausible service‑start window for some elements, though final schedules depend on right‑of‑way and environmental constraints.

The council did not make a formal decision; UDOT staff requested continued input from the city and neighborhood review groups as design advances.