This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Politicians and tax experts often talk of winners and losers. And so it is with the Utah Transit Authority's new bus routes.

The UTA has redesigned its route system in Salt Lake and southern Davis counties. This is a major overhaul, not just a little tinkering. So if you ride the bus now, you might want to take a look at http://www.rideuta.com to see what the transit agency is planning to do to your commute.

The changes are scheduled to go into effect in August, and the agency currently is conducting public hearings. Here's the schedule:

* Salt Lake City Main Library, 210 E. 400 South, Monday;

* Whitmore Library, 2197 East Fort Union Boulevard (7000 South), Tuesday;

* Riverton, 12830 South Redwood Road, Wednesday;

* West Valley City, 3600 Constitution Boulevard, Thursday;

* Murray, 5025 S. State, March 19;

* East Millcreek Library, 2266 Evergreen Ave. (3435 South), March 20;

* Sandy, 10000 Centennial Parkway, March 22.

All will be conducted 4:30-7 p.m.

You also can comment via e-mail from the UTA Web site.

The agency's sales pitch is that the new system will improve service to the suburbs, create more routes with shorter times between buses, more express routes from the suburbs to downtown Salt Lake City and the University of Utah, better align buses with TRAX light-rail lines and eliminate the dual system of separate daytime and nighttime routes.

That all sounds great if you happen to live where your service will improve.

It doesn't sound great if your current bus route is being eliminated, you will have to walk farther to a stop, you will have to transfer to a TRAX train to get to downtown Salt Lake City instead of traveling there directly on the bus, and the net effect will be a longer commute. There are going to be folks in that boat, too.

If you filled out the lengthy service questionnaire on a bus a few months ago, you know that UTA has been gathering customer information for a long time. The agency says the realignment is the result of exhaustive market research.

Whether the result is good or bad really depends upon where you live and where you travel. So log onto UTA's Web site and find out whether you are a winner or a loser. Then give the agency an earful.