During their Wednesday evening meeting, the Carbon County Commissioners tackled the consideration and possible approval of accepting ownership of Emma Park Road from the State of Utah. Commissioner Casey Hopes stated that, while undergoing the process of the Uinta Basin Railway, one preferred route was to go across Emma Park Road.
From there, a title search was conducted and it was discovered the road was still under the state’s jurisdiction. Carbon and Utah counties have been maintaining, caring for and collecting road funds for Emma Park Road for some time. The state also acknowledged that they believed the road to be the county’s as well. Commissioner Hopes stated the intention when the bypass was built will be clarified. The accepting of ownership would allow the county to go into negotiations with the Uinta Basin Railway to put the rail line through the road.
This would not eliminate access for those that choose to continue using the road and would potentially be a source of revenue to the county as its would lease the right-of-way to place the rail there.
Commission Chair Larry Jensen stated that the road was built over 40 years ago and was not built to standards that would sustain it for that long. He continued by stating that the county spends a great deal of money to maintain the road each year and it has been a topic of discussion to mill the asphalt and turn Emma Park Road into a gravel road.
The acceptance of ownership was ultimately approved by the commissioners.