Ogden's Bus Rapid Transit service—the Ogden Express, or OGX—reached its one-year anniversary on Tuesday, with the Utah Transit Authority announcing that more than 890,000 riders have so far utilized the no-fare service, which runs at high frequencies between downtown Ogden, Weber State University and McDay-Dee Hospital.

According to UTA, peak ridership on OGX coincided with the academic calendar, with more than 90,000 riders boarding each month during October and February. Over the 12-month period, 250,000 riders utilized stops at Weber State University, where dedicated bus-only corridors have been built through the center of campus. The service is currently free to ride due to funding from the federal government.

“OGX has been such a game-changer for Weber State. We've seen thousands of students, faculty and staff using it every week, not only to get around campus, but also to get to some of Ogden’s most popular spots,” Weber State University president Brad Mortensen said in a prepared statement. “It’s convenient, it connects us to the community and it saves students time and money on parking—all wins for everyone.”

As a Bus Rapid Transit service—or BRT—OGX combines the lower-cost construction of a bus route with the frequency, convenience and capacity of light rail by utilizing dedicated bus lanes, in this case on Harrison Boulevard and through Weber State University. A similar service—the Utah Valley Express, or UVX—operates in Utah County between Utah Valley University and Brigham Young University. BRT cannot function without dedicated lanes, as buses that run in general purpose or "mixed-flow" lanes become ensnared in the same traffic congestion as private vehicle drivers, negating any benefit that might incentivize a person to utilize public transit.

According to Camille Glenn, a UTA regional general manager, OGX immediately became the most popular Ogden bus route following its launch, and one of UTA's top five routes in terms of rider demand.

“We thank the Ogden community for exceeding all expectations and demonstrating the value of transit," Glenn said in a prepared statement. "The enthusiasm for OGX, along with UTA bus and FrontRunner services, will help cultivate a new generation of transit users.”

Salt Lake County briefly had a BRT line on 3500 South—the Magna Express, or MAX—but the service was discontinued. More recently, construction on 200 South in Salt Lake City has included Business Access and Transit lanes—or BATs—which function similarly to BRT and will allow for high-frequency service on multiple bus routes. And work is underway on the Midvalley Express, or MVX, which will run from Murray Central Station to West Valley Central Station, utilizing the Taylorsville Expressway at 4500/4700 South (UDOT's Highway 266) and Constitution Boulevard/2700 West.

While BRT is a lower-cost alternative to light rail transit, OGX nonetheless required 20 years of planning and more than two years of construction to become operational. Part of that construction timeline was due to the Utah Department of Transportation's decision to widen Harrison Boulevard in order to accommodate high-capacity bus lanes without any decrease in the road space afforded to the drivers of single-occupancy vehicles. Similar widening occurred on University Parkway in Utah County (UDOT's Highway 265) ballooning that surface highway to monstrous proportions to accommodate center-running UVX bus lanes.

An additional BRT route is currently in the planning stages for Summit County, between Kimball Junction and Park City, and the state's longterm transportation plans identify several "core routes" that could one day see BRT-esque service added to major arterials like State Street and Redwood Road, where two of UTA's highest-ridership buses—the 200 and 217—currently operate.

A UDOT spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But when asked about BRT-adjacent highway widening in September of 2023, UDOT's John Gleason said such decisions would be made on a case-by-base basis.

"To allow for better mobility and free flow of traffic, sometimes widening and/or paving the center medians would be needed," Gleason said. "Mixed flow lanes are very typical with BRT projects, with dedicated lanes used to help increase traffic flow when that makes sense."