Case Study:

Envision Utah

Overview

This case study highlights a series of methods to analyze the land use, transportation, air quality, water use, and infrastructure cost implications of alternative regional transportation and land use scenarios. The Greater Wasatch Region of northern Utah is a 10-county area containing three urban areas, including the greater Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The region has recently been experiencing high growth, which has created strains on transportation infrastructure, water supply, and the natural environment. Development in the region is of increasing concern not only to the government agencies that must support it, but to the public that experiences its effects. Since 1996, growth has consistently ranked in public surveys of Utahans as the single most important issue facing the state.

Reflecting this concern, a public-private partnership known as Envision Utah was initiated in 1996 to study the effects of long-term growth in the region and to propose strategies to address growth-related issues. After three years of analysis and public discussion, the Envision Utah process resulted in a set of recommended actions to achieve an overall "Quality Growth Strategy." Development of the Quality Growth Strategy was supported by an extensive technical analysis of alternative transportation and land development scenarios. The Envision Utah analysis showed that in 2020, compared to the baseline, the Quality Growth Strategy will conserve 171 square miles of land; include a more market-driven mix of housing (by modifying some restrictive zoning regulations); result in a 7.3 percent reduction in mobile source emissions; include less traffic congestion; and require $4.5 billion less investment in transportation, water, sewer, and utility infrastructure.

The Envision Utah technical analysis was conducted through a collaborative effort among state, regional, and local agencies. The methods highlighted here include:

• The use of a GIS raster (grid cell) data environment to support the development of existing land use data as well as forecast land use data under various scenarios;
• A simplified air quality model to develop measures of population exposure to primary pollutants; and
• An infrastructure cost model to assess how total infrastructure costs vary according to the density and location of development.

The case study also describes the land use scenario development process; revisions to the regional travel model to estimate non-motorized travel; a water supply and demand model to estimate the water use impacts of different development patterns; and a housing demand analysis to ensure that the Quality Growth Strategy's housing mix is consistent with the demands of the housing market.

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