They will take TRAX to downtown.
A future light-rail line will run from the transit hub - under construction at 600 West between 200 South and 300 South - to where TRAX now ends at the Delta Center.
But should there be one station or two during that five-block ride?
The difference is 30 seconds in time and $500,000 to $1 million in price. But even more important to Mayor Rocky Anderson's office is the difference it may make to future residents, who city officials hope will inundate downtown's western fringes.
Anderson's office is pushing for two stations despite complaints from a major developer and questions from the Utah Transit Authority.
The City Council ultimately will decide the number of stations.
"To continue the pedestrian friendliness of the entire downtown you need to create a transit system that's very accessible. The number of stops is part of that accessibility," City Planner Louis Zunguze said Tuesday. "You can get from one place or another without thinking, 'This is too far to walk.' "
With the success of The Gateway development - which combines housing, shopping and entertainment - and with smaller housing projects going up nearby, city officials see west downtown as a prime spot for high-density housing.
It is one of the few areas where it is politically and physically possible to build high-rise condos and apartments - which can thrive when transit is convenient.
"This whole Gateway area is our high-density neighborhood," said Doug Dansie, a downtown city planner. "If we're going to have a LoDo [a downtown district in lower Denver] or a Soho [in New York], this is where it will be."
The new TRAX extension must be running by 2007, when heavy commuter rail begins. Commuter rail initially will run from Ogden to Salt Lake City's transit hub.
The light-rail route from the Delta Center will cost about $34 million. Salt Lake City is slated to kick in $8.5 million.
If there are two stations, they would be placed on 400 West at about 100 South east of The Gateway and on 200 South at 500 West. If the city chooses one station, there are two possible spots on 200 South: 475 West or 525 West.
UTA is leaning toward one station to reduce the commute time on the train.
Greg Thorpe, UTA's project manager, acknowledges 30 seconds isn't that long. But "it's what the patrons perceive as being jolted around. Our preference is really based on what helps us boost ridership. We're working with the city trying to define" what works best.
Still, riders probably will be used to more-frequent stops. There are stations about every two blocks downtown.
But Gateway's owner, The Boyer Co., plans to lobby the City Council for one station. While two stations would, in theory, bring more shoppers to the center, a station on 400 West would prevent drivers from turning left into a parking garage, said Gateway manager Jake Boyer.
Boyer said 95 percent of Gateway shoppers travel by car. And while a light-rail line next to his development may encourage more shoppers to forgo driving, "we're scared to test that. We've built a $45 million parking garage to accommodate the customers of Gateway. People don't change habits easily. People like to drive.
"It's not the end of the world if people have to walk one more block," Boyer added. "You talk about walkable . . . let it be that. Let it be a place people can walk through."
hmay@sltrib.com
Public hearing
* Salt Lake City's Planning Commission will hold a Jan. 12 public hearing on the proposed light-rail extension. The meeting starts at 5:45 p.m. in Room 326 at City Hall, 451 S. State St.
