Recently, Ogden's Trolley District Citizens Advocacy Network met with Utah Transit Authority officials to pitch a streetcar route from downtown Ogden to Weber State University with a 25th Street-Harrison Boulevard route.
After hearing the Trolley District members state their case, we believe UTA should take the time to seriously consider the 25th Street-Harrison Boulevard alternative.
UTA prefers a straightforward Washington Boulevard-36th Street model as a public transportation route to the university and McKay-Dee Hospital. Whatever streetcar plan is accepted will need funding from the Federal Transit Authority.
The Trolley District committee -- which claims that UTA has focused too much on its preferred option at the expense of fully considering other ideas -- argues that a 25th Street-Harrison Boulevard option will also serve as an economic engine that can help revitalize Ogden's inner city. A 25th Street connection, along with a trolley on Harrison Boulevard, could provide low-income residents a 15-minute trip to Weber State University while reducing traffic, said Trolley District member Shalae Larsen.
A UTA spokesman politely dismissed the group's case, saying that it was, in his opinion, too late to reconsider the Washington Boulevard-36th Street proposal. UTA's Gerry Carpenter stressed the importance of having an established purpose and need in order to successfully persuade the FTA to fund the transit project. Carpenter said that the Washington-36th option had been thoroughly vetted.
We're not convinced, though, that it's too late to bring more Ogden streetcar ideas to the table. In fact, if not now, when? We need to provide the best transit proposal the city can offer to federal officials to ensure funding success. Economic stimulus as a precedent for where a transit route goes is not a bad reason for a streetcar if it also accomplishes the goal of providing public transportation to those who need it. In fact, that should be considered an additional asset for a system.
UTA has made some overtures toward the Trolley District. One idea is to have the 25th Street-Harrison Boulevard project as a separate entity that might one day tie together with the Washington Boulevard-36th Street. That would require separate funding so a timetable is hard to pinpoint.
Ultimately, the Ogden City Council will have to make a final decision. UTA Project Manager G. J. LaBonty is urging the council to have a full public hearing on the streetcar issue. We agree. This issue needs a lot more debate and discussion before a final plan is submitted to the FTA.
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