These developments sharply illustrate the arguments for and against what is turning out to be a controversial intersection design. UDOT says ThrU Turns are a great tool to speed traffic, but nearby businesses say it kills customer access. They have filled UDOT correspondence files with tales of struggle and worry.
Robert Miles, UDOT traffic operations engineer, said ThrU Turns were selected in Draper and Kearns because they could relieve congestion while avoiding removing businesses at the crowded intersections for widening and could avoid even more expensive options such as building bridges.
He acknowledges they make drivers think differently.
A study for UDOT by Avenue Consultants says the ThrU Turn in Draper has helped to dramatically reduce congestion there. UDOT has yet to do such a study in Kearns because of some ongoing lane construction.
UDOT spokesman Adan Carrillo said the design change also helped solve a safety concern in the area.
The UDOT study says sales taxes collected by businesses in the area generally increased in the first six months after the ThrU Turn opened, so "there is no evidence that the ThrU Turn Interchange has reduced overall [shopping] trips or that it has negatively impacted overall economic activity."
Several businesses around ThrU Turns in Draper and Kearns declined interviews, but UDOT correspondence files show many concerns — including the prophetic warning by Common Cents that it would be driven out of business in Draper.
Miles said while UDOT likes the new intersections, it is still learning and open to discussions.
"We’re still looking and listening and talking to people about it. We’re learning," Miles said. "They [the intersections] are doing everything they were designed to do. Now it is a matter of educating, learning and communicating better how to make them work." Salt Lake Tribune
