The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) in Salt Lake City has announced plans for a totally new mode of public transportation—a two-mile streetcar line connecting TRAX light rail with the Sugar House neighborhood.

Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood recently presented $26 million in federal funds for the project through a TIGER II discretionary grant. The balance of funding for the $55.5 million project will come through financial commitments with Salt Lake City and South Salt Lake and $18 million from UTA, a partnership LaHood called “a model.”

UTA has completed environmental work and preliminary engineering for the line, which will follow a historic railroad corridor it owns between the 2100 South TRAX Station and McClelland Street near 1050 East. Construction could begin as soon as the spring of 2011, with a tentative completion date of 2012 or 2013.

UTA explained that the streetcar line will differ from light rail in three ways:
* More frequent stops, about every three-tenths of a mile, for a total of seven stations;
* Lower speeds, 25-35 mph compared with up to 55 mph for light rail vehicles; and
* A different vehicle: a modern low floor car similar to UTA’s new S70 LRVs but in a single-car consist.

UTA estimates ridership on the line at 3,000 per weekday when it opens, rising to more than 4,000 by 2030.

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