The Utah Department of Transportation shared an update on the bypass route at the Heber City Council meeting June 17. The discussion quickly evolved to include safety concerns about north U.S. 40 as well.
With a fatal crash May 27 still front-of-mind for many, Heber residents took advantage of UDOT’s presence at the meeting to plead for new safety measures on the highway.
Currently, the speed limit is 55 mph from River Road to just north of downtown. Around Smith’s Marketplace, the limit drops to 45 mph, and in downtown proper, it’s 35 mph.
As rapid residential development reshapes north U.S. 40, some locals say the speed limits are due for an adjustment.
Wade Hansen owns a farm on north U.S. 40. He said he has a “bird’s-eye view” of the traffic situation, and he doesn’t think the speed limit drops soon enough.
“You got 55, everybody’s going 65,” he said. “Finally, they put a 45 decreased speed limit sign, what, 100 yards from the 35, which is at the light practically – it’s dangerous.”
He said it’s “terrifying” to get into and out of his driveway.
“I don’t understand, from a safety standpoint, why they can’t simply lower the speed limit to even 45, before, say, Coyote Lane,” he said. “Bring it down. It’s dangerous, real dangerous, to get in and out.”
Resident Alicia Richardson agreed. She lives just west of that stretch of U.S. 40 and said she worries whenever she invites guests over.
“Every time we have people up at our ranch, I always say to them, ‘Be very careful, the traffic is so fast,’” she said. “In a few years, we’re going to have some grandchildren with driver’s licenses, and I am petrified for them to come up to our ranch and to leave to go home to Salt Lake. That lefthand turn there is so dangerous.”
The driver killed a month ago, 34-year-old Eliezer Ramirez Morelos, was struck by a semitruck while attempting to turn left from a driveway near Coyote Ridge.
In 2023 and 2024, the Utah Department of Transportation says there were nearly 100 crashes on the five-mile stretch of U.S. 40 between River Road and 1200 South, with three fatalities. The deadly crash in May marked the fourth person killed there over the last few years.
Heber City Mayor Heidi Franco said although she realizes drivers want to get to their destinations quickly, convenience cannot come at such a high cost.
“How many deaths does it take before we finally put our foot down and say safety is more important?” she said.
She said the speed limit on north U.S. 40 ought to be 35 mph from downtown until Coyote Canyon Parkway.
Franco said many Wasatch County drivers see the speed limits as suggestions rather than laws.
“People see 45 and say, ‘I’m going to go 55, oh, now I’m going 60,’” she said. “And that’s why I’m saying we really need to think about 35, because anything above that, I think people are going to just treat it the same.”
She said additional speed enforcement on the highway could help, too.
Any changes to the speed limit on U.S. 40 must be decided by UDOT, since it’s a state highway, not a city road.
City engineer Russ Funk said Heber officials requested a speed study a couple years ago and UDOT didn’t recommend changes at the time. He said as UDOT designs barriers for north U.S. 40, locals and elected leaders should share their thoughts.
“I would encourage the council or anybody else who’s concerned about safety and access on Highway 40 to give their input on that,” he said. “I know the city council is supportive, but there were others in the county who maybe weren’t as convinced.”
The barriers are intended to make left turns safer.
In December 2024, the Wasatch County Council voted 4-3 to support the project, with some councilmembers saying they were worried about access to Potters Lane.
The Heber City Council voted unanimously in favor of the plans in November 2024.
UDOT said at the meeting June 17 a traffic light will be installed at the intersection of U.S. 40 and Coyote Canyon Parkway by the end of the year.
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