“We’re Ready Now.” – Jay Fox on the 2034 Olympics and Utah’s Big Transit Moment - Transit Unplugged

Episode Transcript
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(00:03):
Have you ever wanted to goskiing in Utah right now?
Man, they've got brandnew snow up on the hills.
We went up there a month ago, outside ofSalt Lake City and got to see where the
Olympics were gonna be held in nine years,the 2034 Winter Olympics, back on the
same site that they had quite a while ago.
I'm Paul Comfort, and on thisepisode of Transit Unplugged, we

(00:24):
take you inside the transit systemthat serves the Salt Lake City area.
It's a large regional system calledthe Utah Transit Authority, and my
friend Jay Fox is executive director.
He's been there four years.
He's got a great background intransit, both at the Federal
Transit Administration, atAmtrak, at SEPTA, even time at the
Federal Aviation Administration.

(00:45):
He brought all that experience withhim to Utah where he now is helping
to deliver tremendous results.
So much so that their agency wasawarded the Transit System of
the Year by the American PublicTransportation Association this year,
congratulations to Jay and his team.
We were there filming an episodeof Transit Unplugged TV, which
will air this February on YouTubeand other digital channels.

(01:07):
And today we dive deepinto the transit system.
We talk about the ROI on transit $1invested in UTA Utah Transit Authority
generates $5.11 in economic return, andthey've got the receipts to prove it.
This ROI concept is very interesting.
They've also got their commuterrail service Front Runner.

(01:28):
He just got back from Washington, DCwhere he's lobbying for additional
federal funds to help them double tracktheir service so they can increase their
capacity of services on the commuterrail, their ridership is skyrocketing.
They've got all kinds ofexciting things going on with
Bus Rapid Transit, et cetera.
We show it all to you in a couplemonths, but today you get to
hear about it in depth from JayFox, their executive director.

(01:51):
Enjoy this conversation.
We're with Jay Fox today.
Jay is Executive director of theUtah Transit Authority in Salt Lake.
Jay, thanks for joining the show.
Ah, thanks for having me, Paul.
I really appreciate it.
I'm really looking forward to the show.
Thank you.
Yeah, we had such a great time with you.

(02:12):
About a month ago, our teamfrom Transit Unplugged were
out visiting with your agency.
Gavin Gustafson helped, your publicinformation officer helped kind of be our
guide and we got to see your whole system.
We got to ride all your differentservices and what a fantastic area.
Jay, you've landed in a great placeto live, and what a great system.

(02:32):
Yeah.
No, it's a really cool place.
So, I mean, one, it's nice tolive where other people vacation.
Yeah.
And number two is, you know,it's such a great, great system.
You know, when I was at FederalTransit, just people just rave
about, you know, what we do and whatthis, you know, what this means.
What an agency that moves 40 and a halfmillion people means to a state that has

(02:53):
to only three and a half million people.
So it's a fantas, I really,it's a privilege to be the
executive director here.
Yeah.
You've been there four years now?
It's four years, yeah.
I'm just finishing my fourth year.
And, yeah, it's been, every year hasits own challenges, but, you know,
every year we just keep getting itdone you know, over and over again.

(03:13):
It's great.
3000 employees and theymake it happen every day.
Absolutely.
Now, you were just inWashington, DC this week, right?
I mean, you're, I mean, you mentionedyou worked at FTA as well, and we'll
dive into your background in a minute,but you've got great connections there.
And what were you there working on in DC?
Yeah, so we're, you know, our FrontRunner 2X project, which is the
double tracking of Front Runner.

(03:34):
Right now we have 25% double trackingfor our system, but it only allows us
to have half hour frequency in the peak.
We're looking to increase that to50% double tracking, add an infill
station, add a new locomotivefacility or rail car facility.
And that'll give you noticeto 15 minute service.
Open the door to Sunday service.

(03:55):
And so yeah, it's, itit really is.
It would be a generational project.
So we're out there just letting know, youknow, and letting our delegation know.
The House Senate committees know,you know, what we're doing and
what we hope that they'll partnerwith us when it comes to funding.
That's great.
So Front Runner is your railservice, your heavy rail, right?
Yeah, it's our heavyrail commuter service.

(04:16):
It essentially, is runs parallelto interstate 15, which is, you
know, so we're the transit lifeline.
The Interstate 15 is the, you know,is the highway lifeline and but it's
really hitting capacity I-15 and havingFront Runner, you know, be an option
for folks makes a big difference.
You know, the people think, oh,well this gets people on transit.

(04:36):
That's a great thing.
Well, yeah, it does.
It also pulls cars off the road because,you know, those freight trucks, they
only have one direction and then they go,they can't, they can't use our system.
So unless traffic going I-15 theeasier it's for those, you know,
those trucks to get through.
Absolutely.
Tell us about your whole system, Jay.
I mean, that's only one part of it.
You run an amazing, I got to rideit a great commuter rail service.

(04:59):
What else do you have there?
We have a total 131 miles of rail.
So you have the commuter rail.
We have three light rail linesthat are part of the Trax network.
We have a street car line, which is twomiles that runs into the Sugar House area.
A huge fixed bus route network,three Bus Rapid Transits, one of
which is coming online in Aprila year early, I have to add.

(05:19):
So really exciting.
And, you know, a really great microtransit program for us is known as
our innovative mobility work and,you know, van pool, paratransit.
I mean, you got it.
We're the true multimodal system.
Yeah, absolutely.
What's your annual budget for all that?
So our operating budget is you know, whenwe're actually just finishing that now

(05:42):
with our, with our trustees, it's gonnacome in around 480 plus million a year.
A lot of that, as we get throughnot only, obviously we get farebox,
but you know, well funded for salestax revenue from the counties and
the municipalities that support us.
That's great.
Yeah.
And that, since you mentioned that,let's talk about the service area.

(06:03):
You're not just servingSalt Lake City, the capital.
Oh yeah.
You're serving a whole area, right?
Yeah.
No, it's 77 municipalities, six counties.
It's a lot.
It challenges any governmentrelations professional.
So, you know, uh, you know,because look, the good thing is
the good thing is our, the demandfor our system is really strong.

(06:24):
People want more andmore and more service.
So, uh, you know, the, you know, gettingto make sure that that happens is,
you know, obviously, you know, fundingis part of that, uh, making sure we
have the, the personnel to do it.
Uh, I always say, you know,you build that highway.
Well, they've got the built-in drivers,you know, that are in those vehicles.
You know, you add transit,that's, that's more operators

(06:45):
and more maintenance people.
But yeah, very large service area.
Maybe one of, actually the largestin the country we're, we're, we're
really a highly urbanized area here.
People think of Utah is expansive,but so much of the state is federally
or state owned because it's, youknow, it's wide open space that where
people live is very densely populated.

(07:06):
And I'm sure you sawthat when you got here.
I mean, you, if you were to come to Utah,uh, a century ago, you were like, wow, I
don't even recognize the place anymore.
So yeah, it's, uh, yeah, so that,that's the need for transit 'cause
so a lot of young people are heretoo, and they use transit, you know.
Um, our core ridership is 18 to 34.
Oh, wow.
That's really good, Jay.
Yeah,
yeah,

(07:26):
yeah.
When we were there, uh, we stayed upat the Inn on the Hill, which was,
uh, just down from your state capitol.
That's a phenomenal looking building too.
I mean, we got to tour it, uh, inside.
And, um, the, the weather, theChristmas, we were there in November.
Uh, I mean, you have some ofthe best snow in the country.
I know it's snowing today there,uh, where people go and ski.
And the streets are clean.

(07:47):
It's, uh, it's a, it'sa wonderful area, Jay.
I mean, I was super impressed.
No, and you just mentioned theskiing, which is a, a service
that I didn't even talk about.
You know, we have a seasonal serviceon top of that 12 month service that's
bringing people up to, to all the resorts.
You know, the, the canyonsin Salt Lake County as well
as north and south of there.
Yeah, yeah.
What's that called?
The snow bus.
It's our ski bus service.
Yeah, ski bus.

(08:08):
Ski bus.
Yeah.
We were actually ready to roll it outand uh, the snow wasn't cooperating, but,
uh, I think everybody's very happy tosee it today, so, we'll, we'll get that
ski service up and running right now.
So,
yeah, because some ofthose roads are windy.
We drove up them and one of them islike the most avalanche prone road
in the, in the country or something.
Yeah.
No, and that's, it's a bigpart of our work with the Utah

(08:28):
Department of Transportation.
You know, as that season goesalong, that those avalanche, uh,
threats, uh, you know, come up.
And so we're, we're, our operatingteam is working with them, working with
those resorts all the time to make surethat when we're going up and down those
mountains, it's, uh, it's safe to do so.
It's still, uh, you know, youneed experienced operators
to do that kind of work.
These are narrow roads that,to your point, are very windy.

(08:50):
And, uh, these are 40 foot buses.
And our safety record is, is tremendous.
So, um, but it's because of the effort weput in with, uh, with all our partners.
Yeah, Gavin took us up to a couple ofthe ski, uh, operations, you know, Alta
and the, uh, the other place, Snow Basin,where I think the Olympics are gonna be.
And it was, um, they are very pro,ride the bus, you know, uh, you

(09:12):
know, take the, take the ski bus uphere, don't try to park your cars.
And sometimes they, uh.
The, the lineup of cars just toget in there can be extensive.
No, to get into canyons.
I mean, because it's reallyone lane in, one lane out.
It, it's, uh, you know, uh, once skiseason starts, it's really, really tough.
I mean, I, and it's 'cause everybody wantsto come up there in the peaks, right?

(09:34):
They wanna come up in the peak.
They wanna leave in the peak, right?
Uh, you know, for those who go up superearly or those who wait till the midday,
they're probably a little bit happier.
They don't have to wait as much traffic.
But, you know, and there'slots fill up there as well.
A lot of the, uh, resorts havegone to, scheduled parking.
Uh, because you know, otherwise youget people waiting outside to get
in and they can't even get a space.
Hey, I want to congratulate youon your APTA award this year.

(09:56):
Tell us about that.
Yeah, public transportation system,uh, of the year for, for our class.
Really exciting.
it means, you know, it means alot to me, you know, coming here
and being here for four years.
It means so much to, to our employees.
We're, we're treating theAPTA Award as the Stanley Cup.
It, it's making its way around allthe facilities so everybody can
take a picture with, uh, with it.

(10:17):
Because that's, that's whodoes the work every day.
You know, it's, it's our,it's our operating team.
It's all the people that support thatoperating team on the administrative side.
And, uh, you know, I remember when Ifirst got back from, um, Boston where we,
where we were, we announced as the winner.
Uh, I literally got off the plane, gotin my car, went to uh, headquarters, and
just took it around headquarters posingwith everybody, with a, with a picture.

(10:39):
'cause I just, you know, it'sjust that moment where you
wanna celebrate your success.
And, uh, you know, I mean, look, ourcustomers appreciate what we do every
day, but it's, when you get thatexternal recognition, it makes you feel
really good about what you're doing.
Absolutely.
Well, and it's in recognitionof a lot of great stuff.
I mean, you've had two successful BRTs,you've really rebounded from the pandemic.

(10:59):
You've had a million servicemiles, uh, in, in April, 2025.
Your new track stationwas built in a year.
I mean, tell us some about all that.
You've had some great accomplishmentsover the last year or so.
Just to start from the ridershipthat we had last year, I mean,
we're calculating our, you know,to get to 40 and a half million.
the per capita usage is just as high asany other major transit system out there.

(11:20):
Uh, given the size of our state, to beable to build out yet another BRT, OGX
now is in its second year, all electric.
You know, you've, you've wonthis great APTA award and I mean.
The accomplishments you'vehad, Jay, are just phenomenal.
You're your two successful BRTs, yourrebound in ridership, uh, your million

(11:41):
service miles on April, 2025, change day.
Your new track station, uh, the SouthJordan downtown built in a year.
I mean, tell us some about theseaccomplishments and how you got them done.
it's a testament, uh, to, for,to start with how important
transit is to the region.
You know, you don't, uh, you don't have alot of state legislators in conservative
states that are transit, transit, transit.
Right.

(12:01):
And we, we have that here.
Uh, so, you know, the funding, thedesire, the desires, I said before
for all our communities to, you know,to get more and more in, uh, and, you
know, that just creates successes.
And it also to the projectpoint that you made, Paul.
I think the federal government,the FTA, feel very comfortable
investing in UTA 'cause they know wedeliver all the time and they know

(12:22):
they're going to get the ridership.
So it makes them feel very comfortableabout, you know, what they're,
you know, the bang for the bucks.
So you mentioned the two BRTs that wehave already, you know, Ogden Express
a couple years ago, at first two years,uh, all electric, uh, BRT by the way.
And first two years, amillion customers a year.
Again in a state of threeand a half million people.

(12:43):
Right.
That, that's really showing a lot.
And then a new one that's coming on,uh, online, that's gonna be done early,
uh, mid Valley Express, gonna connectFront Runner out to West Valley, which is
connecting to Trax our light rail systemthat's also gonna connect Olympic venues.
Let's go into your background, Jay.
Sure.
You've had an amazing backgroundin public transportation.
You're one of the most prepared CEOs.

(13:05):
You know, you, you, you have a legalbackground like I do, and you'd
spent some time in law practiceprivately and then FAA, FTA, Amtrak,
SEPTA, and now Salt Lake City.
Tell us about your background and,and what your interest was that drove
you to all these different positions.
Well, I mean, started with the lawcareer like, like you did Paul,
and, um, and eventually led me toengaging with federal agencies, you

(13:27):
know, from representing employeeswhen I was in a plaintiff's practice.
And that got me to FAA, right?
Actually right after 9/11, which was, itwas like, if we were talking about that.
We'd be talking for a couplehours about all the things
that happened right after that.
But that, uh, ultimately I made it,uh, you know, I got a background.
I came up with personnel law, but thenI got a background in procurement and
operations and that, you know, led meto the Federal Transit Administration.

(13:51):
And, you know, the beauty ofFederal Transit Administration is
you, you know, now you're touchingthe world that you're funding.
You're there, you're there atribbon cuttings, you're there on
the street and you see the busescome by, you know, on the train.
So, and that's what gave me the bug.
That gave me the real bug.
and then to your point, I just wantedto get lots of different experiences
in that world, you know, so when I hadthat opportunity in Amtrak, that was

(14:12):
great to be part of the, you know, thenational, the railroad system, and then,
uh, going to SEPTA, major, major carriergoing through the pandemic at SEPTA.
Oh my gosh.
Uh, I've seen that, you know, the effects.
Uh, I worked harder during thepandemic than I ever worked in my life.
You know, it was just, uh, just crazyand, but that wound wound me up here and
it's been, uh, it's been a wonderful ride.

(14:34):
And, um, we did talk aboutthe Olympics for a little bit.
I, I wanna dive into that.
You've, you've got, um, Salt LakeCity is known for the Olympics.
While we were there, wewent and actually visited.
Yeah.
Uh, Gavin took us up to,uh, the snow place where the
skiing is gonna take place.
And we also saw the, um, youknow, the cauldron where the,
where the Great Olympic flame was.
And Mitt Romney really came to thenation's know, you know, knowing about

(14:57):
him because he kind of helped comein there and, and helped do that.
Tell us about how UTA is preparingfor the Olympics that are coming there
again, the Winter Olympics in 2034.
It seems like a long ways off, butyou guys are, you guys are already in
preparation and you've already got a lotalready prepared from your previous one.
Right?
Yeah.
Uh, you know, by the way, you mentionedMitt Romney, he actually directed traffic
at one point in his Olympic games.

(15:18):
That's how on ground
Talk about doing what has to be done, huh?
Yeah.
Yeah.
There's a lot of stories about that.
No.
You know, a wonderful thing about ourpreparation for the Olympic Games is
everything that we had in the plans forwhat we'd like to do for this games.
You know, it was, it was already there.
Right.
It was, it existed.
There's one thing that we said, oh, wegotta do this in order to get the games.
So that, that was the one thingthat we talked about with the IOC.

(15:40):
We're ready today.
We're ready today.
There were projects that we'regonna do that could help, but we're
ready to make it happen today.
And they came out and they saw our system.
They were very impressed with it.
Uh, it's gonna be very differentOlympics than the last one because last
one was mostly park and ride, right?
We, we had like just a little bit ofrail that was just starting a building
that was no commuter rail line thatwas running in the spine of the system.

(16:01):
So we're, we're super.
You know, it's gonna be fantasticthat, that Front Runner 2X project
that I talked about, you know, getting,getting that kind of service, getting
into 15 minute service, it's, it'sall those are gonna be game changers.
All those gonna be important.
And so they're all, they'reall on the hopper right now.
We're, we're hoping to deliveras many as we can by 2034.
But again, if it happened today,Paul, we'd be ready to move people.

(16:23):
I mean, that's amazing.
I've been to several cities lately,including Brisbane and others that are
preparing for the Olympics or big gameslike, uh, the World Cup coming here, and
they're still in heavy preparation mode.
And to, to have it kind of alreadydone eight years ahead of time or
nine years, that's phenomenal man.
Yeah.
Yeah.
No, I think the whole community, Imean, all the venues are, are there all
the, all the hotel space needed for it.

(16:44):
I think they feel, you know, that doesn'tmean that we don't have a lot of planning
to go over the, the, the years ahead.
Uh, but it's nice to have, youalready built all those pieces of
infrastructure that are gonna beneeded to drive the Olympics forward.
Next year I'm hoping todo a documentary on, um.
called, What's Wrong with Transit America?
Why less than 5% of Americansride transit regularly.
Uh, but one thing that's becomeclear as we've done research

(17:07):
for this is that people do ridetransit during big events, right?
Yeah.
Whether it's the Super Bowl,the World Cup, or the Olympics.
I mean, that's where really, we shineand we get a lot of people kind of trying
it or testing it during those times.
I'll tell you.
Here's my, here's my solutionto what you're talking about.
You know, get, uh, youhave a transit system.
Make sure every major university in yourarea, including even the school districts,

(17:29):
have passes for your transit system.
Get those fare agreements down.
Get 'em writing on transit, becauseif they write on transit when they're
kids or when they're a universitystudents, they will stay on transit.
That's the beauty.
They, they, that university populationhas driven our ridership forward.
They,
is that right?
And they, yeah.
They, they take it.
I mean, our number is going upto the University of Utah to BYU.

(17:51):
I mean that Bus Rapid Transit I talkedabout before down in the Provo area
uh, uh, UVX that connects, uh, the UtahValley University and BYU to, uh, two
separate locations to Front Runner.
I mean, you know, uh, it's, that's, that'show you get people riding transit is,
you know, get 'em used to, to doing it.
Uh, and much easier to get the youngperson to get used to riding transit and

(18:14):
continue to do that over their lifetimethan trying to get somebody that as
mature as you and me to convert over.
Yeah.
Uh, to, to transit.
You're gonna be, you're gonnabe a lot easier to do that.
That's interesting.
Yeah.
Let's talk about the economic impact.
The value that transit in general has.
I mean, we know that we're talkingabout how people ride for events,
but the day-to-day usage of transit,particularly there, I mean, how

(18:37):
many jobs do you have with that yousay are supported by what you do?
Yeah, we, we create, create, uh, directlyor indirectly to 79,000 jobs just by
having our system out there, reallyjust by the operations of the system.
Yeah, and I, I think you'reraising a really good point, Paul.
You know, we're, we're,we're transit geeks, right?
We've been around transit for a while.

(18:59):
We're turned on by mobility,we're turned on by accessibility.
Um, but there are a lot of peoplewho are on the investment side,
you know, in, in those statehouses or even in local electeds.
They, they want to seewhat's the economic return.
Yes.
And, and I think that we as an industryare really focused on that now.
And so we spend a lotof time doing it here.
You know, how much, how much dowe return to the state treasury?

(19:20):
How much, just on a basic, you know,you know, $1 invested return, do
you get, uh, it's important because.
I, I told you before, we have a$483 million operating budget.
Right.
Uh, what's that returning, you know?
Yeah.
Because if it's, if it's in multiples,you know, and we have it as, as,
uh, o over a multiple of five,that's a lot back to the community.
So we have a two mile ofour 131 miles of rail.

(19:44):
We have a two mile streetcar lineinto the Sugar House district here.
Uh, in Salt Lake City.
It costs about $60 million to build.
That's a big investment, right?
The University of Utah did a study,$2 billion in economic return.
Over, you know, over thattime period, in fact,
from a $60 million investment.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I would love to send you a picture.
I'm sure we can arrange to have that.

(20:05):
It shows what that area looked like 10years ago when it looks like now, like
literally just a freight over, it'sthe industrial desert turned into this,
you know, like developed Mecca, right?
And that's what transit does it.
It makes a big difference whether it'screating jobs, whether it's just moving
goods and services in a much easierfashion because you're pulling people off
of those roads and putting 'em on transit.

(20:25):
It's, um, it, it, it creates so muchfor the community as well as also,
you know, the cost of cost avoidance.
You know, that's less wear and tearon the highways, less wear and tear on
your cars, you know, that's, uh, butyou gotta calculate those numbers 'cause
that's what the investors care about.
With that.
We don't pay an earnings per share.
Right.
Right.
We pay in return.
Right.
And we're no different than, thanfire and police and all the other

(20:47):
critical infrastructure in that way.
Let me walk you throughsome of the numbers.
I've, I've found when I did some researchhere and tell me if these numbers sound
right, I saw that $9.6 billion more ingoods and services generated by the state
of Utah due the time and mileage savings.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It's an incredible number.
You know, again, it,it's, you know, it's the.

(21:08):
That's what I call gettingthose, those freight trucks
through quick, quicker, right.
That's the simplest, you know, youpull people off onto transit and
the trucks can't go on transit.
So, you know, uh, you know, so that's,that's the way to make it happen.
So it's, it's a huge number, but,uh, it, it's, it's part of my little
game, Paul, where I would love toturn off the transit system for a
week and everybody would get it.

(21:29):
They would get it immediately
Absence makes the hard grow fonder exactly$377 million in tax revenue flowing back
to local, state and federal coffers.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And you know what the, the valueof that statistic, Paul, is
that if you never ride transit.
Or, or if you're an area thatdoesn't have transit, but you're
still in the same state, you'restill getting a benefit from it.

(21:51):
It's going back to the treasury that's,that's helping state parks, that's
helping, you know, subsidy programsfor, for people all around state
agriculture, you know, so it's, it'sall that, all that is circular, right?
And so even again, if, even if you'renot part of a place that has transit,
but you're part of a state that'sbenefiting from transit, you're
gonna find that money back to you.

(22:12):
The last number that I findfantastic is the $500, 500% ROI.
$1 invested in UTA generates$5.11 in economic return.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And I don't think, and UTA is not, um,you know, we're not the exception there.
I mean, that's, I think that'stransit across the country.
We've seen that number before.
But again, it helps, helps our, ouragency justify, you know, its budget.

(22:36):
Right.
You know, not only are we employingall these people, so there's
an economic benefit to that.
Uh, but you know, we're that every,every dollar that's coming into our,
our agency is returning in multiples.
Jay, one last question.
I wanted to, uh, circle backon the Olympic preparation, um,
'cause I forgot about this one.
Aren't you guys working withMilan and LA to help prepare some.

(22:57):
Yeah, no, I mean, you know, uh, I mean,LA's getting ready for the 28th summer
Olympics, so they're already looking toa lot of agencies around the country.
Not only, you know, for personnelsupport, for vehicle support,
because they're not gonna haveenough vehicles run by themselves.
You know, nor, nor did we in2002, we, we, we got both.
Rail and bus, uh, buses that came in.

(23:17):
Uh, so, you know, so we'reworking with the LA Metro team
and the LA 28 organization.
And then, um, our, um, our Olympicorganizing, um, uh, committee
is going to go participatein observer program in Milan.
So there's a couple of usthat are going out there.
Look at mountain operations, and Iwould love to tell you it's a vacation,
but it is anything but I, I, I really.

(23:39):
Got like the itinerary, uh,uh, if I can sneak off to one
hockey game, I'll be lucky.
So, yeah, it's gonna be very busy,but we'll get a lot out of it,
you know, so we're, we're excited.
Absolutely excited about being
You will, I just got back from there.
As you know, I was in Milan, uh, coveringfor our Transit Unplugged TV show, which
is live now, uh, on YouTube for people.
And we got to ride their transit.

(23:59):
I went to the airport riding their, youknow, unmanned, uh, high speed underground
metro system and show people okay.
Yeah.
When you get to the airport, comeright here to this location and
go downstairs, uh, and get onthe train and take it to there.
I mean, uh, they've got it.
They're, they're ready.
I mean, it's right happening.
And that was my request.
Uh, out of the, you know, theorganizing committee was like,

(24:21):
you know, what do you want to see?
As, you know, the executive director, mychief operations officer will be there.
We want to, we, we wanna be infront of that transit agency.
Agency, excuse me, as much as possible.
Right.
We want to be there, uh, because wewanna learn as much as we can from
them as we get ready for our own.
Yeah.
So that is the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Right.
That'll be 26, uh, flyingout on February 1st.

(24:42):
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's great, man.
Well, this is good.
Uh, for those of you who havelistened to the podcast today and
wanna actually see what Jay's beentalking about, we're you're gonna
have the opportunity to do so.
This is, um, a podcast which goes alongwith our upcoming television show.
Transit Unplugged TV featuring SaltLake City and the, um, Utah Transit
Authority that'll air in February,2025 on YouTube, on the Transportation

(25:05):
Channel, on Apple TV, and a bunch ofother places where we're now streaming.
Uh, look up Transit Unplugged TV.
You'll be able to see where the,that avalanche road Jay talked about.
You'll be able to see, uh, thatride the transit and meet some
of the leaders of his agency.
By the way, Jay, you've gotsome great leaders that we
were able to interview there.
Oh my gosh.
It's such a great teamand their commitment.

(25:27):
I, I, you know, I think when yougo to a transit agency and you
can read a little bit of the tealeaves, you can get a sense, I.
The commitment here to customerservice every day is, and, and, and,
and moving people is tremendous.
I, I do it this way.
I, you know, I've been aroundtransit long enough that I've
been in a lot of boardrooms.

(25:47):
I, the, the amount of positive.
Positive public commentis unbelievable here.
It's really, I like
I heard about that.
Yeah.
Yeah.
You go in, I mean, look, there are people,or you know, at any, any world, you know,
you're, you're gonna have people that, uh,that are upset about something or detract.
But we get such strongsupport from the community.

(26:09):
We, we get these constituent reports in.
So many people are really happy with whatthey're doing, and they take the time to
tell you it's, that's, it's even better.
Right.
So, wonderful.
Yeah.
That's great.
The other thing I was gonna mentionwas the last thing that people could
see when they watch it is in your shop.
We went down and there'san amazing, uh, bus shop.
You've got a new facilitythere, uh, a newer facility.

(26:30):
And, uh, the undergroundpits are one big room.
Yeah.
And, uh, I've never seen that before.
I mean, that was pretty phenomenal.
Yeah, that's, uh, you know, that's ourdepot district new, new bus facility
as part of our Salt Lake service unit.
Yeah.
That's great.
And you know, one thing I hopeyou saw down there as well, is
our rollout of our strategic plan.
Oh.
Which is all, you know, all designed,you know, to, to, uh, push it as far

(26:52):
forward to the frontline as we can.
Even though even our mission statement"We Move You" was designed to, you
know, so that every single person andthey do knows what our mission is.
Right?
And it's a bit interpretive too.
I like to think as we as, it's notjust we at UTA, but it's we, our
communities, it's we, you know, our,our elected leaders, everybody together,
working together and make this happen.

(27:12):
So, no, I think, uh, I think when yougo out in our organization, you see.
A, a, um, a unified feel, uh, whichis what I preached from day one here,
which is let's, let's always thinkof ourselves in a 1400 square mile
service area, this huge service areaas one UTA one UTA all the time.
Love it.
Jay, thanks so much for sharingwith us some of the amazing

(27:35):
work you're doing there at UTA.
We wish you the very best asyou head into, uh, the new year.
Yeah, Paul, thanks somuch for having me again.
I, I really appreciate it andthanks for getting me, you know,
allowing me to probe about my agency.
Love it.
Thank you for listening to this episodeof Transit Unplugged, the world's
number one transit executive podcast.

(27:56):
I'm Julie Gates, executiveproducer of the podcast.
Many thanks to the teamthat makes this show happen.
Host and producer Paul Comfort,producer Chris O'Keeffe, editor
Patrick Emile, associate producer CyndiRaskin, and consultants Dan Meisner
and Jonas Woos at Bumper Transit.
Transit Unplugged is beingbrought to you by Modaxo.

(28:16):
Passionate about movingthe world's people.
If you would enjoy behind the scenesinsights and updates from the show,
sign up for our weekly newsletter, whichhas links to can't-miss conversations
with the biggest names in mobility.
Head to transitunplugged.com and scrollto the bottom of the page to sign up.
Thanks for listening, and we'll catch youon the next episode of Transit Unplugged.

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“We’re Ready Now.” – Jay Fox on the 2034 Olympics and Utah’s Big Transit Moment

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}“We’re Ready Now.” – Jay Fox on the 2034 Olympics and Utah’s Big Transit Moment