CACHE COUNTY – At their regular meeting on Oct. 27, the members of the Cache County Council received an update on the ongoing Planning and Environmental Linkages study of a potential traffic corridor in the western portion of the county.
Now in its second phase, that study is a joint effort by Cache County, the Cache Metropolitan Planning Organization (CMPO)and the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) to relieve traffic congestion throughout Cache Valley, according to Matt Phillips, the public works director for Cache County.
The western corridor study is about planning ahead so future transportation options remain available as western Cache County grows, according to UDOT officials. Identifying a future transportation option does not mean a roadway will be built, they emphasize, but the PEL study helps preserve options for future generations while balancing transportation needs with community values.
In response to a question from Council Chair Sandi Goodlander, Jeff Gilbert of the CMPO explained that the PEL study was launched in fall of 2025, funded by a federal earmark obtained by U.S. Rep. Blake Moore (R-Dist. 1).
State officials say that the western portion of Cache County is mostly rural, characterized by productive farmland, open space, wetlands, natural resources and the small-town rural character that makes this part of Cache County unique.
Although much of that area remains undeveloped today, population and employment are expected to grow in the coming decades.
Most of Phillips’ presentation focused on the result of a recent survey of nearly 3,000 county residents about their concerns about growth.
While opinions varied about the pace of growth, the polling conducted this past summer revealed that some 93 percent of local residents were resigned to the reality that growth would occur in the future (38 percent expected gradual change, while 55 percent expected significant change).
Those opinions were most heavily weighted from residents in the county’s urban areas, including 16 percent of survey respondents from the Smithfield/Amalga area, 9.5 percent from North Logan and 8 percent from the areas of Logan, Nibley and River Heights.
Phillips said those opinions jibed with growth estimates by the respected Kem C. Gardner Institute at the University of Utah. Those estimates projected the population of Cache County to top 160,00 by 2035, exceed 180,000 by 2045 and reach more than 200,000 by 2055.
Despite those concerning projections, Phillips reported that residents’ responses to the PEL survey revealed a consensus of shared themes. Those included the necessity of planning ahead to improve north to south mobility and relieve traffic congestion; protecting residential communities; preserving open space; and protecting water, wetlands and wildlife.
The projected timeline for completion of the western corridor PEL study is expected to include open houses for public input in spring and summer of 2027, as well as an anticipated final open house gathering early in 2028.
For additional information about the western corridor study, county residents are encouraged to go online to www.udotinput.utah.gov/westerncachecorridor
or e-mail questions to westerncachecorridor@utah.gov