Environmental study completed on Mountain View Corridor

The Utah Department of Transportation has just released a five-year study of the Mountain View Corridor — moving the controversial highway one step closer to actual construction.

The study is known as an Environmental Impact Statement, and reviews things such as the impact of the road to homes, the environment and traffic flows. Residents have until Dec. 24 to comment on the study.

UDOT is required by federal law to respond to all comments and then release a finalized draft of the study early next year. Groups that are concerned about the road say they plan to carefully review the draft study for error or oversight.

The Sierra Club, for one, worries transit wasn't considered as a viable alternative in the study to take traffic off nearby roads. The group also worries about the impact of pollution from the highway to children.

In Lehi, residents are opposed to the preferred route for the road through their city.

"We have a number of concerns," said Marc Heileson, regional representative of the Sierra Club, in an interview earlier this week.

Teri Newell, UDOT project manger over Mountain View, said her agency is welcoming all comments and concerns from residents about the road.

"It's our goal to get as many comments from the people who have been involved in the project or concerned about it," she said.

Three public hearings will be held next month, and residents are invited to send comment via e-mail.

Mountain View, when built, is proposed to stretch from northwestern Salt Lake County into northern Utah County. The road will require demolition of as many as 384 homes and businesses.

For more information, log on to www.udot.utah.gov/mountainview.

Members of the state Transportation Commission plan to review the draft environmental study during their regular monthly meeting this morning.

---

E-mail: nwarburton@desnews.com