Salt Lake City Intermodal Hub

The Salt Lake City Intermodal Hub (also known as Salt Lake Central on Utah Transit Authority [UTA] routes and SLC by Amtrak) is a multi-modal transportation hub in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States served by the Blue Line of UTA's TRAX light rail system that operates in Salt Lake County and by the FrontRunner, UTA's commuter rail train that operates along the Wasatch Front with service from Ogden in central Weber County through Davis County, Salt Lake City, and Salt Lake County to Provo in central Utah County. Service at the intermodal hub is also provided by Amtrak (with the California Zephyr), and Greyhound Lines, as well as UTA local bus service.

Salt Lake City Intermodal Hub
The Intermodal Hub looking north along 600 West
Location	600 West at 300 South Salt Lake City, Utah United States
Coordinates	40°45′46″N 111°54′30″W
Owned by	UTA[1]
Platforms	1 island platform (Amtrak) 1 island and 1 side (FrontRunner) 1 island and 1 side (TRAX)
Tracks	2 - Amtrak 2 - FrontRunner 2 - TRAX
Connections	UTA: 2, 2X, 3, 6, 11, 200, 205, 209, 220, 228, 509, 513, 516, 519, 520, 902 Greyhound Lines[2] PC-SLC Connect California Zephyr
Construction
Structure type	At grade
Bicycle facilities	Greenbike Bikeshare
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Station code	SLC (Amtrak) SLB (Thruway Motorcoach)
Fare zone	Free Fare Zone (UTA buses and TRAX only)[3]
History
Opened	August 5, 1999 (Amtrak)[4] July 26, 2005 (Greyhound)[5] April 27, 2008 (UTA [TRAX & FrontRunner])[6]
Passengers
2018	45,194[7]  12.5% (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station Elko toward Emeryville California Zephyr Provo toward Chicago Preceding station Utah Transit Authority Following station North Temple Bridge/​Guadalupe toward Ogden FrontRunner Murray Central toward Provo Central Terminus Blue Line Old GreekTown toward Draper Town Center
Former services Preceding station Utah Transit Authority Following station Terminus Green Line Old GreekTown toward West Valley Central University Line Old GreekTown toward University Medical Center
Location
Salt Lake City Intermodal Hub Location within Utah

Location

The Salt Lake Intermodal Hub has several official addresses, depending on the service provider:

• 250 South 600 West - FrontRunner commuter rail[8]
• 300 South 600 West - Greyhound Lines (intercity bus service)[2]
• 325 South 600 West - TRAX light rail[9]
• 340 South 600 West - Amtrak inter-city passenger rail[10]

However, passengers for all services at the intermodal hub can be dropped off in the cul-de-sac at the west end of 300 South off 600 West.

Site history

The site of the hub is the former location of the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW) in Salt Lake City. This location housed the maintenance buildings, a roundhouse, and freight houses for the railroad. It also included D&RGW's original passenger depot prior to the construction of the 1910 depot on Rio Grande Street. Until the 2010s, several large locomotive maintenance buildings remained on the west side of the railroad tracks.[11] This changed on October 22, 2018 when UTA broke ground on a new bus maintenance facility at the site. The construction of the facility will involve the demolition of most of the remaining D&RGW buildings, although the large circa 1900 boiler and engine shop will be rehabilitated and used as major part of the new bus facility.[12][13]

The main hub building, along 600 West, opened in 2005.[14] This building consists of a rehabilitated D&RGW freight house, with a modern round shaped addition on the south end. The freight house originally extended further north, but was cut in half during the construction of the hub. The southern half became the current hub building, while the northern half was meant for rehabilitation as well.[15] The northern half of the freight house was torn down in 2012.[16]

The railroad tracks at the western edge of the hub, originally built as the mainline of the D&RGW, now serve as the mainline for the Union Pacific Railroad. The FrontRunner line shares this rail corridor.

Services

Utah Transit Authority (UTA)

Salt Lake Central is the name of UTA portion of the Salt Lake Intermodal Hub and that is the station name used on all route maps and schedules (bus, the FrontRunner, and TRAX).[8][9] The intermodal hub is in the Free Fare Zone of Downtown Salt Lake City which allows transportation patrons that both enter and exit bus or TRAX service within the Zone to ride fare free.[3] The intermodal hub is also located within the Quiet Zone, so all trains (including Amtrak's) do not routinely sound their horns when approaching public crossings within this corridor.[17][18] Unlike most FrontRunner and TRAX stations, there is only a small Park and Ride lot in close proximity to Salt Lake Central.[8][9]

All of UTA's TRAX and FrontRunner trains and stations, as well as all fixed route buses, are compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act and are therefore accessible to those with disabilities.[19] Since not all FrontRunner passenger cars are wheelchair accessible, signage at the stations, on the passenger platforms, and on the passenger cars clearly indicate accessibility options. In addition, each train has one or more Train Hosts available to provide assistance as may be needed, including the placement of ramps for wheelchair boarding on FrontRunner trains.[20] Ramps on the passenger platform and assistance from the TRAX train operator may be necessary for wheelchair boarding on TRAX Blue Line (weekdays only). In accordance with the Utah Clean Air Act and UTA ordinance, "smoking is prohibited on UTA vehicles as well as UTA bus stops, TRAX stations, and FrontRunner stations".[21]

Local bus

There are also multiple UTA Bus service routes that include Salt Lake Central as one of their stops. Local bus service is provided to all areas of Salt Lake City, as well as a few other cities within Salt Lake County. Additional service to Park City is provided through PC-SLC Connect. (See UTA bus connections below for more details.)

FrontRunner

FrontRunner platforms

The FrontRunner has approximately 23 Ogden-Provo round trips via Salt Lake City with five additional round trips between Ogden and Downtown Salt Lake City. Saturdays consist of 19 Odgen-Provo round trips. Trains operate hourly between 4:30 am and midnight on weekdays (increasing to half-hour runs for morning and evening commutes). Saturdays consist of hourly runs between 6:00AM and 2:30AM As of August 2013 the FrontRunner does not operate on Sundays and holidays. Each weekday there is service to Pleasant View with two trains picking up passengers (no dropping off) in the morning and two more trains picking up and dropping off passengers in the evening for the commute.[22]

TRAX

TRAX platforms

Service by TRAX and the FrontRunner commenced on April 27, 2008,[6] with the opening ceremony on April 26 at 12:30 pm. Salt Lake Central is the northern terminus of the TRAX Blue Line and the former northern terminus of the Green Line. There is not direct connection with the Red Line, nor the Green Line after December 8, 2012 following its reroute to the Salt Lake City International Airport. The Blue Line provides service to Draper in southern Salt Lake County as well as connections with the Green and Red lines (with the Red Line providing service between University of Utah and the Daybreak Community in South Jordan in southwest Salt Lake County and the Green Line providing service from West Valley City to the Salt Lake City International Airport (via Downtown Salt Lake City).

Amtrak

Amtrak Salt Lake station

The intermodal hub is served by the California Zephyr, which provides once-daily service to Emeryville, California (in the San Francisco Bay Area), to the west and Chicago, Illinois, to the east on Union Pacific trackage in both directions. (The next westbound stop is Elko, Nevada and the next eastbound stop is Provo.)[23] Amtrak's official listings (for train service) refer to the intermodal hub as Salt Lake City, UT (SLC).[10] Amtrak was the first tenant of the intermodal hub, constructing a temporary "shack" in 1999 before the construction of the new station in partnership with UTA.[4] In addition to the California Zephyr, Amtrak offers its Thruway Motorcoach connections with service to Boise, Idaho (including stops in Odgen and Twin Falls) and to Las Vegas, Nevada (including stops in Provo and St, George.) Service for both Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach routes is provided by Greyhound Lines.)[24] Amtrak's official listings (for bus service) refer to the intermodal hub as Salt Lake City, UT - Bus Station (SLB).[25]

Intercity bus

Greyhound Lines, in conjunction with its associate company, Greyhound Canada, provide bus service to points all across the United States and Canada. Some of its routes are operated in partnership with Amtrak's Thruway Motorcoach.

Other bus companies that serve the hub include Salt Lake Express[26] and Mountain States Express.[27]

Greenbike

Greenbike[Note 1] is a bicycle sharing system (differentiated from bicycle rental)[29] within Downtown Salt Lake City operated by SLC Bike Share (affiliated with B-cycle). The Greenbike program is intended for short bicycle trips and allows members to pick up any of the available bicycles at any of the many docking stations and then drop it off at any docking station (does not have to be the same docking station where the bicycle was picked up). Greenbike offers 7-day and annual memberships, but 24-hour passes are also available for non-members. Greenbike members are allowed unlimited short trips, with a trip being defined as the time between when the bicycle is removed from a docking station and when it is returned to a docking station. However bicycles may be kept longer than 30 minutes between dockings for additional charges.[30] In addition, members can start a "new trip" immediately after returning the bicycle to any docking station.[28] The bicycles provided by Greenbike are equipped with GPS tracking system that records and provides the member with the miles ridden (and calories burned). Greenbike is seasonal and, depending on weather conditions, shuts down operations in November–December and starts up again in March–April.[28] Other Greenbike docking stations are located near the City Center TRAX, Gallivan Plaza, and Library stations.

Service history

Before moving to the intermodal hub in 1999, Amtrak trains provided service at the Union Pacific Depot at 400 West and South Temple, and in 1986 moved to the Rio Grande Depot at 300 South Rio Grande Street. Original plans did not have TRAX serving the intermodal hub, only Amtrak, Greyhound, the FrontRunner, and UTA buses.[31] However, by 2004, UTA decided to extend TRAX to the intermodal hub.[32] By 2005, a three-station extension from Arena to the intermodal hub was decided on, and construction began in 2007.[33][34]

Future plans

Future expansion of the FrontRunner is anticipated to eventually include service north to Brigham City and south to Payson and possibly Santaquin or maybe even Nephi.

There are ongoing studies regarding the feasibility of resuming Amtrak's Desert Wind and Pioneer routes.[35][36] However, most of the current focus regarding the Desert Wind route is between Los Angeles, California, and the Las Vegas Valley in Nevada. Also, of the four possible routes considered for the Pioneer, two of them run from Denver, Colorado, through southern Wyoming to Odgen, then north to Pocatello, Idaho, thereby entirely bypassing Salt Lake City.

Notes

1. GREENbike is a collaborative program between the Salt Lake City Redevelopment Agency, the Salt Lake City Transportation Division, the Salt Lake Chamber, The Downtown Alliance, Select Health, Rio Tinto, Utah Transit Authority, and Visit Salt Lake.[28]

References

1. Hancock, Laura (September 20, 2009). "UTA sues Greyhound over injured woman". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved April 4, 2013.
2. "Salt Lake City, UT". www.greyhound.com. Greyhound Lines, Inc. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
3. "Free Fare Zone" (Map). rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. Archived from the original (JPG) on January 9, 2013. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
4. Van Eyck, Zach (August 7, 1999). "S.L. transit center gets its first tenant Amtrak service begins at the temporary hub". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved August 26, 2009.
5. "Greyhound Relocates Facility to New Downtown Intermodal Passenger Hub in Salt Lake City, Utah". www.greyhound.com (Press release). Greyhound Lines. July 25, 2005. Retrieved August 1, 2013.
6. Raymond, Arthur (April 18, 2008). "UTA to celebrate TRAX extension: Becker to talk today during event at new Planetarium Station". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
7. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, FY2018, State of Utah" (PDF). amtrak.com. Amtrak. June 2019. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
8. "FrontRunner Stations". rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
9. "TRAX Parking and Stops". rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
10. "Salt Lake City, UT (SLC)". amtrak.com. Amtrak. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
11. "Denver & Rio Grande Freight House and Boiler/Engine Shop". utahheritagefoundation.org. Utah Heritage Foundation. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
12. Burt, Spencer (October 23, 2018). "UTA unveils plans to build new clean air depot out of former train spot". KSL News. Salt Lake City, Utah. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
13. Ellis, Sheri Murray (November 29, 2010). "Utah Transit Authority Central Bus Operations and Maintenance Facility Historic Buildings Survey, Salt Lake City, Utah" (PDF). rideuta.com. SWCA Environmental Consultants. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
14. Snyder, Brady (July 4, 2005). "Intermodal hub is ready for prime time". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
15. Page, Jared (May 22, 2008). "UTA holds off on razing warehouse". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
16. "Another one bites the dust". The Desert Empire Project. December 12, 2012. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
17. Hesterman, Billy (November 29, 2012). "No more horns: Quiet zone now in effect for trains". Daily Herald. Provo, Utah: Lee Enterprises. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
18. "Front Runner South FAQs". rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
19. "Fixed Route Accessibility". rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
20. "Riders with Disabilities". rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
21. "Rider Rules". rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
22. "FrontRunner" (PDF). rideuta.com. Utah Transit Authority. December 8, 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
23. "California Zephyr" (PDF). amtrak.com. Amtrak. January 13, 2014. p. 2. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
24. "California Zephyr" (PDF). amtrak.com. Amtrak. July 15, 2013. p. 3. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
25. "Salt Lake City, UT - Bus Station (SLB)". amtrak.com. Amtrak. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
26. "Shuttle Pickup Locations".
27. Mountain States Express
28. "Greenbike FAQs". greenbikeslc.org. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
29. "What is Greebike". greenbikeslc.org. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
30. "Rates". greenbikeslc.org. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
31. Snyder, Brady (July 4, 2005). "Intermodal hub is ready for prime time: But it still must wait for commuter and light rail". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
32. Arave, Lynn (January 11, 2004). "TRAX extension to new hub is unveiled". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
33. "S.L. Council OKs proposal for 2 light-rail stations". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. October 17, 2005. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
34. "TRAX work to start Monday". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. January 4, 2007. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
35. "Pioneer Restoration Organization". Retrieved January 3, 2015.
36. "Pioneer Route Passenger Rail Study" (PDF). amtrak.com. Amtrak. October 16, 2009. Retrieved May 1, 2011.

External links

• Salt Lake City, UT – Amtrak
• Salt Lake City Amtrak Station (USA RailGuide -- TrainWeb)
• Salt Lake City, UT (SLC): Great American Station (Amtrak)