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The busy intersection of State Street and University Parkway in Orem could be transformed into a freeway-like interchange, where one road will pass over the other with ramps to connect them.
The Utah Transportation Commission approved the first step toward such a conversion on Friday, authorizing a $1.5 million environmental study to evaluate the possibility.
Eileen Barron, spokeswoman for the Utah Department of Transportation, said the idea came out of work that her agency and the Utah Transit Authority have been doing in preparation for a new "bus rapid transit" line between Orem and Provo — where buses will have a dedicated lane, and passengers buy tickets before boarding.
"We are looking at each intersection along University Parkway," and at improvements that might help handle high traffic volumes there — with potential incorporation into work for the BRT line.
She noted that the intersection at State Street is the third busiest in the state — behind only intersections in Taylorsville on Redwood Road at 4700 South and 5400 South.
In the evaluation process, "the design team identified grade separation as a possible option to help move people through the area more efficiently," Barron said.
The commission also took separate action Friday affecting the related bus rapid transit line that is planned to run from the FrontRunner station in Orem to Utah Valley University, University Mall, BYU, downtown Provo and the Provo FrontRunner station.
The commission formally included that project in the state's transportation improvement program, and identified potential funding sources for it — including a hoped-for $75 million in federal funding (which President Barack Obama included in his proposed budget) and a matching $75 million in local funds.