During Tuesday’s Mountain Accord Q&A, Summit County Council Member Chris Robinson provided a succinct explanation to why there won’t be a train heading from the airport to Park City anytime soon. Mr Robinson explained that the route was owned by the Federal Highway Administration (FHA). He said the FHA first looks at the time it takes to travel between two points via car (i.e. the airport and Park City) and then decides whether an alternative is faster. This is typically based on traffic causing the route to slow.

He then explained that I-80 was nowhere near capacity. He was effectively saying that right now nothing would be as fast as a car and therefore the FHA wouldn’t explore alternatives.

We aren’t sure anyone heard him during the meeting. At least three people referenced rail between the airport and Park City after his comment. That said, Mr Robinson’s explanation makes sense to us.

Also, the fact that it would cost $3 billion to build, means that idea is a non-starter.