UTA’s 822 will make five new stops in Santaquin, but future passenger rail system unsure
More than a year after choosing to annex into the Utah Transit Authority’s bus route plans, Santaquin residents will be able to ride UTA busses to Provo.
On December 12 of this year UTA route 822 will be making three morning trips northbound to Brigham Young University from Main Street in Santaquin. Two more busses coming southbound from BYU will stop in Santaquin in the afternoon.
Riders will have to wake up early to catch their busses though, morning pickups along Main Street are scheduled at 5:29 a.m., 6:12 a.m., and 6:51 a.m. Afternoon drop-offs are scheduled to leave from BYU en route to Santaquin at 4:35 p.m. and 5:32 p.m.
Hugh Johnson, UTA Regional Manager for the Utah County area, said they “may extend more 822s to Santaquin as ridership evolves.” He also mentioned the possibility of extending the 808 route, which goes from Payson to Utah Valley University, to include a Santaquin stop sometime in the near future.
The hybrid electric UTA busses currently serve 650 riders a day and approximately 24 riders per bus in Payson. It’s unclear how many more riders Santaquin will contribute to those numbers.
Rumors of an upgrade to UTA FrontRunner’s plans for a Santaquin station were unfounded. Santaquin’s projection for a FrontRunner station still lies in the years 2031-2040 with an Enhanced Bus or Rapid Transit project.
According to Johnson, Santaquin still needs to purchase additional right-of-way land to connect to the commuter rail project going to Payson. UTA has not been involved with the purchasing of additional right-of-way thus far. “Whether or not UTA will participate in the purchasing of that right-of-way is not sure,” said Johnson.
UTA officials did extend praise, however, to Santaquin for its transportation efforts.
“Santaquin has been the most progressive city in incorporating transit into their long-term plans,” said Johnson.
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I for one am thrilled the UTA bus is coming to Santsquin. But those hours arrgh. I would really like to see more pick up times around the noonish hour. I’m a little confused about the route. Will there be separate busses that hook up with Payson? I need more info. please. I really hope the people of this good city will take advantage of what is being offered. The more we use it the more services we will get, have more money in our pockets from the gas we save and a lot less pollution.