UDOT sees success in Express Lane education push
Photo supplied, Utah Department of Transportation
An undated view of Interstate 15 near Bountiful with the Express Lanes visible.Using the Express Lane along I-15 is a lot easier than people think.
That’s the Utah Department of Transportation’s message for the state.
Last month, a press release from UDOT announced that they would be partnering with the Utah Highway Patrol to educate the public on using the 82 miles of Express Lanes between Riverdale and Spanish Fork through mid-July.
“One of the biggest misconceptions we hear is that the Express Lane is only for carpools,” UDOT Public Relations Director John Gleason said in the release. “The reality is anyone can use it with a transponder.”
According to the release, “valid Express Lane users include carpools with two or more occupants, buses, motorcycles and vehicles with an Express Pass transponder in Toll Mode and a positive account balance.”
UDOT Region 1 Senior Communication Manager Mitch Shaw told the Standard-Examiner in an email that he was giving the education campaign a positive review.
“It’s gone well,” Shaw said. “Any time you can re-educate the public on how the system works, that’s a good thing.”
He said that he’s unsure of how many new transponders were distributed over the last month, but noted that there are now more than 30,000 active Express Lane transponders in the state.
Shaw said that the education campaign came about because they frequently saw people incorrectly utilizing the lanes.
“We see people using the lane illegally, crossing over the double white line (which is also illegal), and people not understanding they can pay for the use of the Express Lane system,” he said.
For more information, visit https://connect.udot.utah.gov/public/express-lanes.


