City hears SR‑209 solutions study proposing medians, roundabouts and bike/trail extensions

Britney Ward, Sandy’s assistant director and city engineer, walked the council through a solutions development study for SR‑209 between 1300 East and Wasatch Boulevard that the city and UDOT jointly funded. She summarized traffic counts, crash data and public input and said the study’s $260,000 cost was split roughly 50/50 with UDOT. "The funding that was spent on the project was $260,000. That was split, about $50/50 between UDOT and us at Sandy City," she told the council.

Ward highlighted corridor safety data: "Between 1300 East and Wasatch Boulevard, the corridor … there were 283 crashes reported between the year 2014 and 2023," she said, and noted the corridor had a higher percentage of severe and injury crashes than statewide averages. Recommended concepts included a grade‑separated pedestrian crossing at 1300 East, extended bike lanes and buffered bike lanes, targeted right‑turn pockets and signal‑timing changes at Highland Drive, several options for Raintree Drive (signal realignment, signalized U‑turns, or roundabouts), and shared‑use shoulders that could serve as temporary bus lanes for winter canyon travel.

Council members repeatedly pressed for additional intersection‑level traffic counts and modeling before committing to major changes. Ward said the consultant used existing UDOT and regional counts rather than commissioning new counts to limit study cost; she and council members agreed more detailed traffic modeling, right‑of‑way study, and UDOT coordination are required before construction. Ward noted some short‑term items — signal timing adjustments, advanced‑warning signals, and a southbound right‑turn lane at Highland Drive — could be implemented in the near term while larger projects undergo further study and funding coordination.