The Utah Transit Authority is set to construct a new and faster form of public transit in Provo and Orem in 2015 to help accommodate the growing populations surrounding both BYU and UVU.
The new bus rapid transit (BRT) system is meant to alleviate congested roadways and meet the demand of commuters in both Provo and Orem.
“It is projected to carry nearly 13,000 people per day,” said UTA spokesman Remi Barron. “The current route is a 15-minute service and carries around 3,600 people per day.”
Thousands of commuters will be able to ditch their cars and hop on the bus once this new system is put in place. Barron said the BRT system will include exclusive bus lanes, traffic signal priority and even departure times available every five minutes during peak hours of the day.
“It could replace one route,” said Barron. “But (it) will integrate with other existing UTA routes to create a much more frequent and reliable solution to transport students and faculty to and from the BYU area and enhance access to other destinations including Salt Lake City and Ogden.”
The BRT system is proposed to have a total capital cost of $159.37 million with $84.38 million coming from a local option sales tax according to the locally proposed financial plan.
