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PROVO - Roads or commuter rail.
That's the Solomon-like decision facing Utah County commissioners. They soon expect to put a quarter-cent sales tax initiative on the November ballot that would help pay for transportation improvements.
On Aug. 1, they'll decide how those revenues would be divided if the measure passes - or perhaps which one gobbles up the whole pie.
Commissioners scrapped a resolution Tuesday that would have channeled 100 percent of that potential money for roadwork - leaving the way open for commuter rail to take a big bite.
The Provo segment would tie into the 44-mile-long commuter-rail line - to be known as FrontRunner - now being built between Salt Lake City and Pleasant View, north of Ogden. It is expected to begin service in 2008.
Percentages are still up in the air, but commissioners are not shy about which transportation flavor they favor for their piece of the Wasatch Front.
"If we ever want [Interstate 15] reconstructed, you have to have a way to move commuters through the log jam," said Commissioner Steve White. "Commuter rail is the only way."
An overhaul of I-15 through the county is scheduled to start in 2011. The reconstruction will require many commuters to find alternatives, whether it be intercity roads or, if available, commuter rail.
Commissioner Jerry Grover said commuter rail "has importance," but he believes it isn't prudent to earmark the transportation tax strictly for that mode of transportation when rail money won't be used for five, six, or even seven years.
"I've always viewed roads as the bigger problem," Grover said. "People want the roads fixed now."
He said there are more options to fund commuter rail - such as through property taxes - than there are for roads.
But both White and Commissioner Larry Ellertson are banking on commuter-rail construction in Utah County beginning sooner than Grover anticipates.
"They could start construction in a year and a half if they do a design-build," White said, referring to a method of designing major projects that speeds up construction. He also suggested that having commuter rail available will be key in winning federal funds for the I-15 re-build.
For his part, Ellertson believes the commission will come up with a resolution that would divide revenues between both roads and rail.
"I believe there needs to be a mix," Ellertson said. "I'm actively working on trying to get those percentages determined and moving that agenda forward."
If funded, the latest link in the commuter-rail system would run from Provo to Salt Lake City. If Utah County signs on, transportation officials would look for funding to build the line between the Utah County boundary near Point of the Mountain and Salt Lake City - a challenge Utah Transit Authority officials say they look forward to.
"We've always said [the Provo-to-county-line segment] is up to them," said Mike Allegra, UTA's chief development officer. "We appreciate their willingness to talk about it and discuss it."
Still, the commissioners' final breakdown will mean nothing if voters ax the proposal.
But if the measure wins voter approval, the tax would generate an estimated $15 million for transportation the first year, and between $630 million and $650 million by 2030.
The take from the tax would increase an estimated 5.5 percent each year because of population and business growth in Utah's second most-populous county, according to Darrell Cook, Mountainland Association of Governments executive director.
"There's never a perfect time, or a perfect silver bullet, for this," Cook said Tuesday. "Going heavily into transit, heavily into commuter rail, is probably our best shot."
Not everyone agrees with Cook, but they all agree something has to be done to deal with the gridlock caused by Utah County's growing population.
The state predicts the county's population will leap from today's 455,000 to more than 804,000 by 2030.