Salt Lake metro system resiliency

Due to Utah’s wildfire risk, it is necessary for aging infrastructure to be replaced and increased measures to be taken to reduce the risk of wildfire.

The Capital 13 projects will result in 1.6 miles of covered conductor and 28 pole replacements.

• In areas where higher risk has been identified, extensive hardening measures will be put in place to reduce risk, including enhanced vegetation management guidelines, an increased frequency of inspections and advanced monitoring systems such as pole mounted weather stations.
• Other hardening measures will also include non-expulsion fuses, covered distribution lines, steel poles, fire-resistant pole wraps or coatings, and potential reconstruction of parts of the line.

The Olympus 13 projects will take over 11 miles of existing electrical distribution and rebuild it with nearly 10 miles of underground lines and over three miles of overhead tree wire (the additional line miles will be due to the underground lines following the road instead of remaining overhead in straight lines).

• Undergrounding the distribution lines will help reduce wildfire risks because they will no longer be able to come in contact with vegetation. Meanwhile, the enhancements to remaining overhead distribution lines will include tree wire, which has a protective coating that reduces deterioration and helps avoid fire ignition risk. 

The Capital 13 projects include 1.6 miles in Salt Lake County/Salt Lake City, mainly in the areas of City Creek, Bonneville Shoreline Trail and Popperton Park. The project areas include about 1.4 miles of city lands, along with small lengths of state and private lands. 

The Olympus 13 projects include Lower Millcreek Canyon, East Bench, Porters Fork and Upper Millcreek Canyon. The project areas include just over eight miles of U.S. Forest Service lands, half a mile of county lands and about four and a half miles of private lands. 

The Olympus 13 projects will take place in phases:

• Phase 1 – Lower Millcreek Canyon – Removal of 86 poles; installation of 4 steel poles and 2 wooden poles
• Phase 2 – East Bench – Removal of 74 poles; installation of 40 steel poles and 2 wooden poles
• Phase 3 – Porters Fork – Removal of 43 poles; installation of 38 steel poles and 3 wooden poles
• Phase 4 – Upper Millcreek Canyon – Removal of 44 poles; installation of 4 steel poles and 15 wooden poles
• The span between poles will be up to 390 feet
• The height of the poles will range between 35 and 55 feet based on terrain and location.

Capital 13: 

• In 2024, a segment of distribution lines was rebuilt with covered conductor, resulting in 1.6 miles of safer, more reliable power lines. A total of 25 older wooden poles were replaced with new weathering steel structures, and five older wooden poles were replaced with updated wooden poles. 

Olympus 13:

• Phase 1 (Lower Millcreek Canyon) was completed in fall 2022. Phase 2 (East Bench) was completed in December 2024. Phase 3 (Porters Fork) began in summer 2024 and is expected to be completed in summer 2025.

Olympus 13-Upper Millcreek Canyon | 2026-2027

• Work is being coordinated with the road widening project being performed by the U.S. Forest Service and Salt Lake County. This project will be completed in 2026-2027 when the road widening project is completed. 

• Transmission line upgrades in Salt Lake City Foothills
• Rocky Mountain Power Wildfire Safety
• PacifiCorp Wildfire Mitigation Plans