UDOT holds two public meetings on potential improvements for Kimball Junction and S.R. 224

Evening traffic at Kimball Junction on SR 224, where the proposed Dakota Pacific development is under consideration. Photo: TownLift

SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah — With increased traffic and a rapidly growing population happening in Summit County and Park City, the Utah Department of Transportation is holding two public meetings in which an environmental impact statement will be shared regarding improvements to I-80 and the S.R.-224 interchange and on SR-224 through the Olympic Parkway intersection.

The first meeting will be held in person on January 10 from 5:30-8 p.m. at Ecker Hill Middle School, and the second virtually on January 11 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on zoom. Both sessions will cover the same information and have opportunities to ask questions and make comments though only the virtual meeting will have a formal presentation.

Dating back to 2021, when the Kimball Junction and S.R. 224  Area Plan was completed, the search for solutions to the increased traffic has been narrowed down to three alternatives of the original 30 proposed. Each potential plan carries varying levels of improvements to the intersection and for pedestrians.

Alternative 1 calls for a split-diamond interchange, one-way frontage roads, and the addition of a pedestrian tunnel at Ute Boulevard under S.R.224. There is also a proposed transit or high occupancy vehicle (HOV) only ramp that would exit before the outlets. This plan is estimated to cost between $54.2 million and $74.4 million.

Alternative 3 would bring grade-separated intersections, improve pedestrian crossing facilities at Ute Boulevard and Olympic Parkway, and change the I-80 interchange. Under this plan, the depressed road, a road at a lower elevation than the adjacent one, would act as a pass-through allowing traffic to pass through Kimble Junction more efficiently. This plan is estimated to cost $116.5 million.

Alternative 4 would be a combination of improvements with the widening of north and southbound lanes on S.R. 224, a potential transit/HOV-only lane from the I-80 exit ramp to a right-turn-only lane at Ute Bouvlbard and other improvements that would allow for more efficient travel but at a lower cost of $29.8 million compared to the other plans estimated totals.

The comment period for the project will begin on December 27 and last until January 27, 2023. For more information, including how UDOT develops solutions during the planning process, what goes into an environmental statement, and other information, see the Kimball Junction UDOT website.