Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx and Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) were among the speakers at Aug. 16 opening ceremonies for the Utah Transit Authority’s (UTA) Draper TRAX light rail line. The 3.8-mile line between Salt Lake City and the suburb of Draper entered regular service two days later.

The opening of this line marks the completion of UTA’s FrontLines 2015 project—both ahead of schedule and well under budget. The project, one of the largest public works efforts in Utah history, connects more than two million people along 70 miles of rail on the Wasatch Front; it also included three other TRAX lines—Mid-Jordan, West Valley City, and Airport—and FrontRunner commuter rail connecting downtown Salt Lake City with Provo.

“This is a great day,” said UTA General Manager Michael Allegra. “We have finished one of the nation’s largest transit development programs two years ahead of schedule and more than $300 million under budget.  This accomplishment is due to the great partnerships between UTA and the community. Our community is a model in this country for the things that we do—and we do them together.”

“What you’ve done here is an example to the country of what transit can do to transform a community,” Foxx said. He emphasized that the new line will help shorten commutes and preserve one of the public’s most valuable resources: time. 

Hatch said of the Draper line: “We have a great state, and this is making it better.”

FTA provided $116 million for the Draper extension through its New Starts Capital Investment Grant Program. In addition to the new track, the project included three new stations with park-and-ride facilities.

Photos courtesy of Utah Transit Authority UTA General Manager Michael Allegra speaks at opening-day ceremonies for the TRAX Draper Line.	Children attending the event had an opportunity to decorate commemorative T-shirts.

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