The art of slowing down: Payday Drive Pilot Project rolls into Phase 2

Phase 1 involves the installation of chicanes created with paint and delineators (Installed April 7, 2025). These chicanes are designed to slow vehicles by requiring them to maneuver through a lane-shifting pattern. Photo: Park City Municipal.

PARK CITY, Utah — Aiming to reduce speeds and improve safety in local neighborhoods, Park City has launched the Payday Drive Pilot Project—one of several traffic calming initiatives being rolled out this spring and summer through the city’s Neighborhoods First Streets Program. Phase 2 of the program is coming soon.

This program directly responds to community feedback calling for safer, more livable neighborhood streets. The pilot projects are designed as temporary traffic calming measures to test solutions that could become permanent features in the future. Resident input and data collection will guide next steps and determine whether these pilot treatments will be adopted as long-term capital improvements.

The Payday Drive pilot project is being implemented in three phases, each lasting approximately a month and a half to allow for effective data collection and evaluation:

• Phase 1 involves the installation of chicanes created with paint and delineators (installed April 7). These chicanes are designed to slow vehicles by requiring them to maneuver through a lane-shifting pattern.
• Phase 2 will add median islands using planters, in addition to the chicanes.
• Phase 3 will remove the chicanes while retaining the median islands. The median islands will force vehicles to stay in their more constrained lane and maneuver around the islands.

Public Improvements Engineer Becky Gutknecht, overseeing the project, emphasized the program’s goal: “This initiative is about prioritizing neighborhood safety, supporting community feedback, and creating residential streets that put people first.”

This spring, the Neighborhoods First Streets Program includes other pilot installations throughout Park City.

Installation planned for the week of May 12. The intersection of Little Kate and Lucky John will receive a treatment of curb extensions created with paint and delineators. This measure aims to improve pedestrian safety at the intersection and help slow traffic by narrowing the roadway at the intersection. Vehicles naturally slow down when they feel constricted, enhancing overall safety for both pedestrians and drivers.

A mini roundabout will be added at the intersection with Triton, expected to be installed the week of May 5. We have noted speeding, particularly down the hill on Ledger Way, as vehicles approach the Clubhouse, school bus stop, and other areas of heightened pedestrian activity at the neighborhood’s entrance. This roundabout is designed to require vehicles to be cognizant of their speed and slow down to navigate the intersection so that they are more aware and drive more slowly and carefully.

These installations are temporary and composed of paint, cones, and sometimes planter boxes. The effectiveness of each treatment—whether a roundabout, chicane, curb extension, or median—will be closely monitored through speed data and community feedback.

Each of these measures is part of a broader city effort to enhance traffic safety, improve quality of life, and make Park City’s neighborhoods more walkable, bikeable, and family-friendly. If the pilot projects are found effective, they may be funded in the 2026 fiscal year as part of a larger Capital Improvement Project.

The city encourages residents to stay informed, participate, and provide feedback:

• Learn more and share your thoughts: engageparkcity.org/neighborhoods-first-pilot-projects

• For questions, contact: Becky Gutknecht at Becky.Gutknecht@parkcity.org