This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Although downtown Provo is historic, it is not functional in today's world; it needs to have better parking and a left turn lane onto University Avenue.
Making a left turn from Center Street onto University Avenue is nearly impossible unless you are the first car in line. And if you want to go straight but happen to be behind a car turning left, just enjoy the wait you have ahead of you. This intersection would be less congested and less hazardous if a left turn lane and arrow were added.
Another issue is the parking along the edge and middle of the street. Because of this, there is limited visibility to cars backing up and pedestrians crossing the street. No one can see the other person on the street, which is creating a pending accident situation.
Without changing the actual look of downtown itself, street parking could be changed to parallel spots, helping with the visibility issue. Provo has been trying to keep their historic feel in the downtown area, but from the changes that have occurred the last few years, putting in these couple of changes should be the least of their worries.
Kaytee Howell
Provo