State Route 179, also known as the Midvalley Highway, is a

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-acces ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

. It runs through the northern part of the

Tooele Valley Tooele ( ) is a city in Tooele County in the U.S. state of Utah. The population was 35,742 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Tooele County. Located approximately 30 minutes southwest of Salt Lake City, Tooele is known for Tooele Army ...

, located in eastern

Tooele County Tooele County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 58,218. Its county seat and largest city is Tooele. The county was created in 1850 and organized the following year. Tooele County ...

Route description

The Midvalley Highway is proposed to begin at SR-36 south of the city of

Tooele Tooele ( ) is a city in Tooele County in the U.S. state of Utah. The population was 35,742 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Tooele County. Located approximately 30 minutes southwest of Salt Lake City, Tooele is known for Tooele Army ...

, proceeding to the northwest. After crossing the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

's main line, it will turn to the northeast, passing the east side of the Utah Industrial Depot. After passing the depot, it will turn to the northwest again before crossing SR-112 at 1000 North. The route will cross Sheep Lane and Erda Way before reaching SR-138, where it will turn back to the northeast. It will proceed northeast to a trumpet interchange at Interstate 80, where it will end. At full build-out, the highway will be approximately long, consisting of of arterial and of freeway.

History

Planning

The need for a highway running down the center of the Tooele Valley had been identified by 2001, when it was recognized that the existing SR-36 would not have enough capacity for future traffic volumes. Although initial remedies included widening SR-36 and a new 1000 North extension (now part of SR-112), planners knew the Midvalley Highway would eventually be needed as a long-term solution. By January 2011, UDOT released an Environmental Impact Statement defining a Preferred Alternative for the route. A Travel Demand and Crash Data Review was completed in November 2013. On May 11, 2018, the

Utah Transportation Commission The Utah Transportation Commission serves as an independent advisory committee within the State of Utah, United States with the responsibility of deciding how available transportation funds are spent and prioritizing transportation projects within t ...

signed a resolution designating State Route 179 as the official number for the Midvalley Highway, defining SR-179 as the proposed highway from SR-138 north to I-80. The same resolution also mandated that SR-138 end at the Midvalley Highway; the segment between there and SR-36 will revert to

jurisdiction. However, these changes are contingent on the construction of the relevant segment of the new Midvalley Highway, and as such were not included in the 2019 Legislature's annual state highway amendments bill.

Construction

The

Utah Department of Transportation The Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) is an agency of the state government of Utah, United States; it is usually referred to by its initials UDOT (pronounced "you-dot"). UDOT is charged with maintaining the more than of roadway that co ...

is currently working with Tooele County to design Phase 1 of the project. This phase will consist of a

two-lane freeway A two-lane expressway or two-lane freeway is an expressway or freeway with only one lane in each direction, and usually no median barrier. It may be built that way because of constraints, or may be intended for expansion once traffic volumes ris ...

from Interstate 80 to the current SR-138, a distance of . In addition, the existing SR-138 roadway will be realigned, and a new intersection will be constructed at Sheep Lane. Pre-construction work will begin in summer 2019, but major construction is not expected until 2021.

Future

Plans call for the segment between I-80 and SR-112 to be eventually upgraded to a four-lane

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

, with the portion between SR-36 and SR-112 becoming a four-lane

arterial An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pu ...

Interchanges Interchange may refer to: Transport * Interchange (road), a collection of ramps, exits, and entrances between two or more highways * Interchange (freight rail), the transfer of freight cars between railroad companies * Interchange station, a rai ...

are proposed at I-80, SR-138, 1000 North (SR-112), and the future 3400 North parkway, with at-grade intersections planned for Utah Avenue (former SR-112) and SR-36. Grade separations will be provided at the Union Pacific Railroad line, Erda Way, Sheep Lane, and the future Midvalley Trail.

Major intersections

This table reflects the full proposed routing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:State Route 179 179 179