- Salt Lake Valley
Salt Lake Valley is a 500 square mile valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the
U.S. state ofUtah . It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably West Valley City, Sandy, and West Jordan; its total population is 948,172 as of 2005.The valley is surrounded in every direction except the northwest by steep mountains that at some points rise 7,100 ft from the valley floor's base elevation. It lies nearly encircled by the
Wasatch Mountains on the east, theOquirrh Mountains on the west,Traverse Ridge to the south and theGreat Salt Lake on the northwest, with the peaks ofAntelope Island visible.Every entrance into the valley is extremely narrow and often congested. They include the
Point of the Mountain to the south via theJordan Narrows , a gap in theTraverse Mountains , narrow entrances between the Great Salt Lake and Oquirrh Mountains to the northwest and the Great Salt Lake and the Wasatch Mountains to the north, and several canyons to the east includingParley's Canyon andEmigration Canyon .The Jordan River runs north through the valley between
Utah Lake and theGreat Salt Lake bisecting the valley, and along with numerous mountain streams and reservoirs, provides irrigation water to the rapidly-growing valley. The only areas that have not been urbanized are near the Great Salt Lake (prevented by frequent flooding) and in the far west and mid-southwest parts of the valley, although even those areas are beginning to experience the effects of the Salt Lake City urban area's rapid expansion. Some experts are claiming that the valley will be urbanized rim-to-rim within the next 50 years Fact|date=February 2007.A company known as
Kennecott Land , which owns the eastern foothills of the Oquirrhs in the western part of the valley, recently drafted a plan that would develop the rest of the entire valley within 75 years, adding at least 500,000 residents. The first development, known as theDaybreak Community , has already begun construction. It will focus ontransit-oriented development and will also feature a ski resort in theOquirrh Mountains and a university campus.Interstate 15 runs north to south through the middle-eastern portion of the valley and Interstate 80 runs east to west in the northern quarter of the valley from Parley's Canyon into Tooele County to the west (where it cuts across a portion of the Great Salt Lake). The Interstate 215 belt route, State Route 154,
Bangerter Highway , and State Route 201 are also major transportation routes. TheUtah Transit Authority operates an extensive bus system across theWasatch Front , including the Salt Lake Valley, in addition to twolight rail lines (known as TRAX) in the valley. One runs fromEnergySolutions Arena in downtown Salt Lake City south to Sandy, while another runs east to theUniversity of Utah . A third line extending from Murray through West Jordan to theDaybreak Community in South Jordan has been approved. Acommuter rail line north to Pleasant View in Weber County is currently under construction.ee also
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Mormon Trail
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