BIKE LANES

Bike lanes on State Street were discussed during the 2018 Life on State Study.  Salt Lake City and UDOT partnered on the 2018 Life on State study with UDOT agreeing to the following deviations from their roadway design standards to help accommodate the City’s vision for the project.

  • 11’ through lanes and turn lanes

  • Changing the UDOT standard design vehicle to allow for the use of curb extension to shorten pedestrian crossing distances

  • Shortening left turn storage lengths to accommodate a raised median island

  • Adding signalized mid-block crossings

State Street is a state route under the jurisdiction of UDOT and it was ultimately decided that instead of placing striped bike lanes on State Street that adding high-comfort bike lanes on routes adjacent to State Street, for example Main Street and 200 East, was the preferred option.

Additional considerations for not adding bike lanes on State Street included the following:

  • High traffic and truck volumes on State Street

  • The lack of existing bike lanes on State Street

  • The trade-off between using some of the available space in the State Street cross section for bike lanes vs using it for additional pedestrian space behind the curb line and for on-street parking

Due to these decisions, Salt Lake City just launched the Life on State Bikeways Plan – website coming soon! 

Bikeways Plan Project Description:

To understand this iteration of Life on State, one must understand the past. In 2008, the original Life on State Plan kicked off, resulting in a beautiful dream for State Street that no one knew (or agreed) how to implement. In 2016, the Life on State Implementation Plan began, and immediately spawned clashes over whether bike lanes were acceptable on State Street. State Street provides direct access to so much, however one must admit that it’s not the most inviting place to ride a bike. Partners started to realize that Salt Lake City and South Salt Lake City would need to consider other parallel routes to create a true “world-class” bicycle and pedestrian facility for residents and visitors. Thankfully, there are good alternatives, and it is the point of this effort to decide: what routes parallel to State Street should be highlighted as people-friendly corridors, and what investments can we make to create true world-class facilities on these corridors that also foster economic growth and community spirit? How can we connect these great routes like rungs on a ladder to the destinations on State Street? This plan is just getting going in December 2020 and will run concurrently with other Life on State activities and projects. Stay tuned for more information, and email kyle.cook@slcgov.com if you’d like to receive project updates.