The D-News reports on UTA lobbying

According to the Deseret News, UTA spent a bundle on lobbying the past four years:

SALT LAKE CITY — When the Utah Legislature convenes next month, one publicly funded agency will have as many as eight lobbyists bending lawmakers' ears on Capitol Hill.

The Utah Transit Authority spends more on in-state lobbying than any local government entity. From 2008 through September 2012, UTA contracts with state lobbyists totaled nearly $1.3 million, according to figures provided by the agency. On average, it pays out about $260,000 a year.

Tribune news story: 'UTA looks to future transit growth'

A story at The Salt Lake Tribune today notes the UTA board is peering into the future, as best it can, in an effort to guide its planning in the years ahead.

Allegra said if the UTA and developers encourage more “transit-oriented development,” or building residences where people can walk to bus and train stops, it could fuel much of that growth in transit use. Land use plans adopted by regional planning agencies are pushing that idea more as a way to handle housing and transportation needs amid future growth.

Perlich encouraged UTA to reach out more to young people and ethnic groups as it plans its future to ensure that it meets their needs. Allegra said UTA is in good position to help handle that with plans for expanded TRAX, commuter rail, new streetcars, bus-rapid transit, express buses and traditional bus service.

Today's Tribune editorial criticizes firing of state archaeologists

"Valuing History" is the headline on a Tribune house editorial today. The paper's editorial board comes out swinging against the state's "vindictive" action on behalf of development-loving politicos and private business interests. It's a worthwhile argument to be made, but does anyone believe it will get those jobs back? Didn't think so.

The positions of state archaeologist Kevin Jones and assistants Derinna Kopp and Ronald Rood were eliminated, not only to save money, but to settle scores. The three had become an annoyance to some of the powerful people in the Legislature, governor’s office and the Utah Transit Authority, and they had opposed powerful real estate developers.

It seems they became targets after they fought a proposed site of a new FrontRunner station in Draper when it was discovered also to be the location of an ancient American Indian village. It was a major archaeological find, the earliest known example of corn cultivation in the Great Basin. The three pushed to get the station relocated, raising the ire of Terry Diehl, who was a member of the UTA Board of Trustees and, at the same time, an owner of a real estate company that wanted to locate transit-related developments at the original site.

Powerful people tend to be vindictive. Now this trio of knowledgeable scientists is off the state payroll, and the state is the poorer for it.

New TRAX trains in service July 7, etc.

RailwayAge reports that,

Some TRAX passengers in Salt Lake City and vicinity will begin riding Siemens S70 light rail transit cars Thursday, July 7, as the cars begin entering revenue service. The S70s will enter limited service on direct trains that operate from Fashion Place Station (6400 South) in Murray to the University of Utah Medical Center Station on weekdays. The new trains will be featured on 10 northbound and 10 southbound trips each day.

The Mid-Jordan and West Valley TRAX lines are scheduled to open Aug. 7 and will operate exclusively with the new vehicles.

Those of us who frequently ride the downtown TRAX lines will find interesting:

UTA notes the S70 vehicles are low-floor cars that allow riders to board straight from the platform without climbing stairs.

I'm just curious as to whether the new trains work with existing platforms at established stations. I'm guessing they do, but maybe not.

And at The Salt Lake Tribune: "TRAX replacing broken electronic sign system"

When electronic signs at TRAX stations were new, they displayed when the next trains would arrive. But they quit working, and have been little more than digital clocks amid such problems as not being able to obtain replacement parts.

"The old signs had reached the end of their life cycle. We couldn’t get replacement parts. Support was not available. Some of the [companies] that built the original system had gone out of business," said UTA spokesman Gerry Carpenter.

He said UTA found that because of such problems, the old signs would not be compatible with new signs it is installing on the new Mid-Jordan and West Valley City lines (scheduled to open on Aug. 7) and other extensions that are under construction to Draper and Salt Lake City International Airport.

So UTA decided to install a new sign system. It has removed the old signs on the existing Sandy and University of Utah lines.

Carpenter said new signs will be installed at the older stations over the next several months. Transfer and high-traffic stations will receive them first, and they will be added at other stations as crews and resources are available, he said.

The Deseret News reports on a new UTA board member: Troy Walker, a Draper city councilman.

And a press release notes that:

Lawson Products, Inc., an industrial distributor of more than 300,000 maintenance and repair solutions, was awarded a three-year contract to supply all of the Utah Transit Authority's (UTA) fastener needs. As per the agreement, Lawson Products will provide a minimum of 2,500 different fastener products including bolts, hex head cap screws, miniature fasteners, nuts, screws, socket products and washers to the multi-modal transportation leader that will be used for ongoing train track, rail car and bus maintenance.

Finally, at KCPW: "Salt Lake-Park City Bus Route Slated for October Launch"