1. United States
2. Utah
3. Letter

I urge you to vote no on State Bill 242. This bill represents an unprecedented state overreach into local transportation decisions that should remain with Salt Lake City residents who actually use these streets daily. S.B. 242 specifically targets three corridors in Salt Lake City, forcing the city to "mitigate the impacts" of traffic calming measures even though recent studies show these projects have minimal impacts on vehicular mobility. Sponsor Senator Wayne Harper claims the bill doesn't mandate removing bike lanes, yet simultaneously requires locals to prove these lanes aren't "causing an impediment." This creates a costly administrative burden for projects with already proven safety benefits. The February 9 Senate Transportation Committee hearing drew overflow crowds of residents opposing this bill. Troy Saltiel, an executive board member for Sweet Streets SLC, articulated what many constituents believe: "Local is where decisions are made best" and "the people who are actually living near these streets — the ones who are put in danger on the streets — have the most say about what's happening." Beyond the three targeted corridors, S.B. 242 would effectively bar Salt Lake City from implementing highway reduction strategies on many arterials and grant the state veto power over proposed changes on others. The bill mandates 11-foot minimum car lane widths and requires onerous stakeholder engagement to remove as few as three parking spaces on certain roads. Saltiel warns the bill's wording could allow state review of any street in the city, creating "essentially a back door for them to pick on certain streets when someone who's well-connected has a complaint." This sets a dangerous precedent. If successful in Salt Lake City, similar state interference could spread to other Utah cities and beyond. Local communities deserve the right to design streets that prioritize their residents' safety without state micromanagement. Vote no on S.B. 242.