Last Friday, the Utah Department of Transportation approved the Provo River Parkway. That’ll be a new 3.5-mile trail connecting trails at the Deer Creek Reservoir dam to Vivian Park in Provo Canyon.
The project is estimated to cost $34 million, and UDOT agreed to cover the majority of that. Wasatch County pledged $2 million in early February, and Utah County and the Mountainland Association of Governments have agreed to pay for the rest.
Wasatch County Manager Dustin Grabau said after a long process to decide how to split costs, he’s glad the project can move forward. Depending on weather, he expects UDOT to begin construction this spring or summer, and he hopes the trail will be ready sometime in 2023.
“The existing portion of the Provo River trail is already an incredible asset to our community, and you see that just in the number of people who utilize it,” Grabau said. “We’re hopeful that this new UDOT construction project will be just as popular and an amazing amenity for everyone, honestly.”
According to UDOT, people used the trail in the canyon that ends at Vivian Park about 350,000 times in 2020 - nearly 1,000 visits per day. On the peak day that year, there were almost 3,500 users.
The existing Vivian Park trail already runs through Provo to Utah Lake.
State agencies are also in talks with Summit County, Salt Lake County, Morgan County and others about building trails to connect their trail systems. UDOT Program Manager Matt Parker told the Wasatch County Council the goal is to create a system across counties with around 200 miles of connected trails.
One part of that loop could be a trail through Parleys Canyon, connecting the Parleys Trail in Salt Lake City to the Summit County Rail Trail.
One regional goal is to connect trails around the Jordanelle Reservoir to the Summit County Rail Trail, which would involve building on land that’s currently privately owned.
Grabau said there’s momentum behind the multi-county idea, but it’s still a long way from becoming official.
“What I think you’ll see is consistent progress in making additional extensions of this trail until, ultimately, we get the whole loop. When that whole loop will be complete, though, I would guess is still several years off.”
