Update on the North Fields and need for continued action
An update on the North Fields
Thank you again to the more than 900 people who signed our petition asking UDOT to move the bypass out of the North Fields and back toward US-40.
After substantial public opposition to Option B, UDOT delayed the Final EIS and began evaluating changes to the North Fields alignment. During the comment period, all seven members of the Wasatch County Council, the Midway mayor and City Council, and the Heber City mayor and three of five City Council members joined a letter asking UDOT to evaluate an alignment based on Route B that runs parallel to existing US-40.
There have been few public updates since. UDOT has said it is considering “shifting the alignment towards the east in the North Fields.” That language is concerning. A modest shift east would not accomplish what our local leaders asked for. Their request was clear: if a bypass is built, the northern portion should be placed as close as possible to existing US-40, including evaluating whether it can be integrated with the existing highway corridor.
Two important facts became clearer through this process:
1. Most Main Street traffic is not simply passing through.
UDOT’s own 2018 traffic study found that about 20% of Main Street traffic was pass-through traffic during the spring study period and estimated that figure could rise to about 35% in summer. In other words, roughly 65% to 80% of Main Street traffic had an end destination in the valley.
2. Serious water questions remain unresolved.
The North Fields overlie Class IA pristine groundwater, and the joint Heber City, Midway and Wasatch County response specifically asked UDOT for additional route-specific aquifer vulnerability analysis, long-term chloride and TDS projections, groundwater monitoring commitments, and a clearer comparison of groundwater risk between the alternatives.
Once a highway is built through the North Fields, we cannot undo it. We should not accept a compromise that permanently gives away what generations of community leaders, farmers and residents have worked to preserve.
This decision is not final. UDOT is still evaluating alignment changes and now expects the Final EIS and Record of Decision in spring 2027.
Utah’s general election is November 3, and several Wasatch County and state offices are on the ballot this year. Our city, county and state leaders need to continue hearing directly from residents while UDOT is reevaluating the alignment.
Moving Option B slightly east is not enough. We expect UDOT to seriously evaluate an alternative that places the bypass at or immediately adjacent to the existing US-40 corridor and preserves the North Fields.
Come walk the North Fields
Fields & Forks is hosting a free community walk through the North Fields followed by a BBQ on Saturday, October 10. Check-in begins at 3:00 p.m., with 1-, 2- and 4-mile routes and BBQ at 6:00 p.m.
Learn more and register:
Keep talking to your elected state, county and city officials, and making your voice heard. Residents should continue demanding a transparent process and asking UDOT and our elected leaders to explain publicly how transportation, land-use and development interests are shaping this decision.
We still have an opportunity to change the outcome, but our leaders need to understand clearly that the community expects a bypass solution that preserves and protects the North Fields.