YOUR AD HERE »

Kimball Junction Transit Center is important cog in county’s future

The Park Record editorial

PR

You may have missed it because you and your car were stuck in a snowstorm-exacerbated traffic jam, or you were jockeying for a parking place among masses of holiday shoppers. This week, Park City and Summit County celebrated the opening of a new transit center that promises to ease some of those transportation woes.

The Kimball Junction Transit Center, located at 1899 W. Ute Blvd. west of the county library opened officially on Tuesday with high-fives among elected officials and staffers. Their excitement is warranted. The center enables the free city/county joint transit system to add routes and increase frequency. It also offers prospective users shelter, restrooms and parking.

While it has yet to earn an endearing nickname, the KCTC is also tricked out with new fuel-efficient buses and, out in the parking lot, a charging station for electric cars.

The new center comes with a package of transit improvements that will be a boon for commuters and seasonal employees who will hopefully be able to leave their cars at home or in nearby satellite parking areas, thereby reducing traffic in downtown Park City.

Officials are hoping that both residents and visitors will embrace the new hub as they have its counterpart on the other end of the line, the Old Town Transit Center on Swede Alley. Built just prior to the Olympics, the Old Town Transit Center has become an essential fixture in moving people around the city, especially during special events.

Down the road, plans for the center in Kimball Junction include public spaces aimed at creating more of a sense of community in an area that has been mostly a pass-through for shoppers, skiers and Salt Lake commuters.

While the Kimball facility was in the works long before the two new transportation and transit sales taxes were approved by voters last month, the spanking new bus station is a great rallying point for all Summit County residents who are concerned about the future.

Summit County’s mounting transportation challenges are far from over but the new transit center and everyone who uses it are definitely part of the solution.

For bus schedules and more information about Park City and Summit County’s transportation initiatives go to: http://rideon.summitcounty.org/
Or download the free app: myStop


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Park City and Summit County make the Park Record's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.