This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Significant widening of interstate freeways ­and long stretches of two-lane highways are included in the final rural transportation plan adopted Wednesday by the Utah Transportation Commission as it met in Logan.

The plan prioritizes highway projects for the next 30 years in areas not covered by metropolitan planning agencies.

The Utah Department of Transportation figures that $2.5 billion will be available for projects in rural areas through 2040, but it says $7 billion is needed to keep up with growth and safety needs.

Among projects given higher priority for funding is widening Interstate 80 from three lanes to four from the mouth of Parleys Canyon in Salt Lake County to Jeremy Ranch near Park City — a $53 million project. Plans also call for $25 million worth of improvements at nearby Kimball Junction within the next 10 years.

But the plan leaves unscheduled and unfunded — through 2040 — another $426 million worth of additional I-80 widening and improvements between the mouth of Parleys Canyon and Kimball Junction that UDOT says it would like to complete when, and if, money becomes available.

Elsewhere, the plan calls for $209 million worth of widening on portions of Interstate 15 in Beaver, Iron and Washington counties, but leaves unscheduled $435 million worth of additional widening and freeway interchange upgrades along I-15 that UDOT would like to fund eventually.

The plan also calls for spending $86 million through 2040 to add passing lanes or to widen many stretches of U.S. 40 between Heber City and Roosevelt, but it leaves unscheduled an additional $12 million in widening of the highway near Heber.

Some other items of note in the plan include: $309 million worth of widening and interchange work on Interstate 70 in Millard, Sevier and Emery counties; $238 million worth of widening and interchange work on I-80 in Tooele County; and widening the road in Ogden Canyon, a $65 million project.

The full plan is available online at UDOT's website: udot.utah.gov.