On SLC's wide streets

SLC has the widest streets (132'). It's a quirk resulting from our large blocks, and surveyors convention that the ratio of street width to block size be 5:1 (Our blocks are 660', so it's a 10:2 ratio). In a very limited number of cases, it's handy, as it permits us to do things like have a 24' LRT guideway with 6 lanes of traffic. But most of the time, it's just acres of asphalt. (132' ROW means each blockface represents two acres of asphalt). Some of that gets used for parking, some of it for bikelanes. In other places, we've expanded the 'parkstrip' between sidewalk and curb out 20'. In other places, we've added planted medians with trees.