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Lawmakers are pumping $1 billion more into transportation, transit projects

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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah State Legislature will pump $1 billion into transportation and transit projects.

The additional money, which has the support of Senate Republican and Democratic leadership, will fund statewide projects.

"It’s really important as we grow," Senate President J. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, told reporters on Wednesday. "We can’t build enough roads. We’ve got to have a good transit system, double-tracking Frontrunner’s been talked about a lot, some transit lines out to the Point of the Mountain."

Senate Minority Whip Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, said she was supportive of the funding.

"We are excited to see infrastructure being prioritized through that bill," she said. "We think it’s a better approach and we think it’s time to bring infrastructure to the whole state."

The funding allocation takes advantage of federal stimulus dollars. Late Wednesday, the Senate said the allocation would go into "The Bill of Bills," the massive $24 billion state budget that will soon be voted on.