From Deseret News archives:
Group wants corridor but not with tolls
The group is called Utahns for Safe and Efficient Transportation. For the past month, it has been running commercials on cable stations such as CNN and ESPN, talking about how Mountain View should not be built as a toll road.
Copies of those commercials were distributed on a DVD to lawmakers along with a note that said lawmakers need to take "bold steps" to build Mountain View, and that building the highway as a toll road will "defeat its purpose" of relieving congestion along the west side of Salt Lake and Utah counties.
Dave Owen, who works as a consultant for USET, said the purpose of distributing the DVD was to inform lawmakers about how cities, residents and businesses feel about Mountain View. "They're awfully busy during the session and may not know the message that's being sent out to their constituents," Owen said.
Funds to purchase air time for the commercials came from several private businesses and the Utah Trucking Association, Owen said. The cost was about $50,000 to $60,000, he said. Cities did not contribute funding.
Mountain View is proposed to run from I-80 in Salt Lake County, south into Utah County. The Utah Department of Transportation is now studying whether to build the highway as a toll road. Tolls are estimated to pay for about two-thirds of the cost of the $2 billion highway.
For more information about USET, or to view a copy of the commercials distributed to lawmakers, log on to: goutahgo.org.
E-mail: nwarburton@desnews.com
