Stories of High School 2019 - 2023

Government Paper

To Senator Romney,

My name is Portter Horton. I live in Cache County, Utah. I am writing to ask you to support me in helping continue to make public transportation accessible to all citizens in Utah.

In Salt Lake City, the population is growing rapidly and not everyone has access to cars. The city is busy and it makes it super hard for people to get around. According to your senate website, (Romney welcomes investment from bipartisan infrastructure bill to update Utah's light rail system, May 5, 2023, ) you just gave 60 million dollars to help make public transportation more accessible to all. This is a great start and we are getting somewhere but when we offer public transportation, we should give it to the entire state and not just Salt Lake City.

People in Utah need a way to travel fast and efficiently. Salt Lake City and all over the state of Utah need more services available and that's why we need more facilities around the state. After 3 years, the Utah Transit Authority just built a new facility (Increasing facilities to increase service: Welcome, depot district!, May 11, 2023, ) to get Utahns to their destination faster. For those who don't want to wait in rush hour traffic on Interstate 15 or don't want to pay a fortune to pay for gas, this will make a huge difference in the state and along the Wasatch Front. The more public transportation we have the faster and more efficient our lives become. This is why the Utah Transit Authority should keep expanding so Utahns don't have to travel far for public transportation.

Public transportation is great and makes our lives easier but people may prefer to take their own cars. Having your own car is so much more convenient as you can go wherever you want at any time. (The Pros Of Private Transportation, July 1, 2022, .) You don't have to wait at a train station or bus stop for long periods of time so you can get things done quickly. However, I still think public transportation is better because you can save money on gas and it can go a long way as gas is super expensive and not all Utah citizens have tons of money to drive.