U.P. files to cancel trains on 900 South

The city will be responsible for roughly $11 million of the nearly $50 million cost; UTA and Union Pacific will pay approximately $15 million each, and the federal government has agreed to contribute $5 million. The Legislature's $3.5 million backing in the final days of the 2006 session put in the final money needed to realign the rail line. That $3.5 million will come from Salt Lake County, which has informally agreed to use its share of transportation money from sales taxes to help move the rails.

Hearing of Union Pacific's petition to abandon the line made Mike Harman, chairman of the Poplar Grove Community Council, cautiously optimistic.

"We want to make sure the tracks are coming up before we're celebrating too much," Harman said. "We've been told before it's going to happen."

The community hopes to have trails or a park in the line's place, said Van Turner, the city councilman who represents the area.

"It's always been a vision of rails to trails — an urban trail to go to the Jordan River and on to Redwood Road," Turner said. "We could put in some infill housing — monster homes would be welcome on those parcels."

Gonzalez hopes that a stop to the train traffic will prompt his neighbors to spruce up their property.

"A lot of people aren't investing in their homes to upgrade them because of the train traffic — they almost feel like they'd be putting out money that they wouldn't be getting a return on," Gonzalez said. "We're looking forward to a better quality of life."

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