- Salt Lake City has now completed 104 road projects since 2018 bond, improving 122 miles of streets.
- The $87 million bond also helped add infrastructure upgrades across the city.
- A handful of projects are planned in 2026 as the city nears end of bond.
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's capital city is now all but finished with projects tied to a major road improvement bond, but not before drastically improving some of its worst-rated streets.
With more projects wrapped up this year, Salt Lake City transportation officials say they have completed 104 road projects over the past few years, improving 122 miles of streets and 310 lane miles. The completion of a project to drastically change 2100 South within the Sugar House business district this summer marked the last of the city's major bond projects, joining similar enhancements along sections of 200 South, 300 West and 1100 East/Highland Drive.
"This is what local investment looks like in action. Salt Lake City residents put their trust in us to use these funds wisely, and the results speak for themselves: smoother streets, upgraded utilities, more trees, and stronger neighborhoods across the city," said Mayor Erin Mendenhall in a statement.
The projects originate with the Funding Our Future bond that residents approved in 2018, which called for up to $87 million for road improvements. It was in response to a 2017 city report that found that nearly two-thirds of its streets were "poor" or worse.
Construction on improvements began after the first wave of bonds was issued in late 2019. More than half of Salt Lake City's roads are now considered good, satisfactory or fair, 104 projects later, city transportation officials said. They add that close to 60 miles of sidewalks, curbs and gutters have also been rebuilt, and upgrades were also made to over 15,200 feet of aging infrastructure, like sewer and water lines running underneath some roads.
More than 2,700 new trees and plants were also added, though it's unclear how many may have been removed during construction. Dozens of new pedestrian signals and 24 miles of new bike lanes or shared paths were also built, along with 11 new raised crosswalks.
"These projects show the value of working across departments to maximize public benefit," said Salt Lake City engineer Mark Stephens. "When we rebuild a street, we're not just laying asphalt — we're modernizing utilities, improving safety and planning for long-term sustainability."
A handful of bond-related projects are slated for 2026, as Funding Our Future nears its end. They include the reconstruction of parts of L Street in the Avenues, Navajo Street in Poplar Grove and 700 North near the Salt Lake City International Airport.
Meanwhile, Salt Lake City is considering a few changes to its road projects following a study led by the Utah Department of Transportation that was completed in October. Some of it would adjust where "lane reduction" strategies are included, while the city would also seek to improve communication with residents over road construction projects and find ways to better mitigate construction impacts, among other things.
