'You won't need a car': UTA chief calls public transit key to future

Like his grandfather, who was once a sheriff in Apache County, Ariz., John Inglish has a knack for rounding up trouble.

Inglish, who grew up in Phoenix, has spent almost 30 years at the Utah Transit Authority and the past nine at the helm. Along the way, he has earned plenty of foes. During his first years as general manager, Inglish was a target for anti-TRAX advocates. Today, his critics are fiscal conservatives and low-income advocates who say UTA is "mismanaged" and does little to assist needy riders.

But Inglish, 60, truly believes in what he is selling. In an interview with the Deseret Morning News, he shared his vision of the future of transit in Salt Lake County and along the Wasatch Front.

Deseret Morning News: What are your goals for transit in Salt Lake County?

Inglish: The long-term goals are to make Salt Lake County one of the finest places in North America to live.

Deseret Morning News: What do you mean by that?

Inglish: I mean by that, a place where people can enjoy the environment without having to deal with air-quality problems taking away the beauty of the mountains, the air we breathe. Where they're not stuck in delays in traffic. . . . You get out to the edge of Salt Lake County and look out across the valley. This is a big, big place. We're not going back to the old days. We're not going back to horse and buggy days. This is going to become a major metropolitan city in this country, because it has a lot of talent. This place has a lot of talent, great education. It has all of those things that will make this a great city and a great attraction for businesses.

One of the big objectives is economic development. We've got to keep that going. We're increasing our population every year, and most of that is not in-migration from somewhere else. It's us. We like families here, we have significant-sized families, we have a close family culture and thus we want our family to be here. We want there to be the economic opportunity for members of our family. . . . I think that's what motivates the need for good public transit. It addresses the environmental issues, it addresses the economic issues, it addresses the development. . . .

Deseret Morning News: Thirty years from now, what do you want the valley to look like in terms of transit?

Inglish: It will be dense, significantly denser from a population point of view. The areas that are open now will be largely filled in. In terms of transit, you won't need a car. You'll be able to get throughout the region on good public transit: bus, train, light rail, heavy rail, gondola — whatever. Those systems will be there because we'll need them to go around. Twenty-five to 30 years from now, you won't need a car to get around.