Drivers who regularly white‑knuckle it through Spanish Fork Canyon are about to see major changes. On February 5, the Utah Department of Transportation announced a new phase of safety work on U.S. Route 6, starting with a $53.4 million widening near Sheep Creek Road. That stretch will be expanded from two lanes to four, a center median will be added, and some of the sharper curves will be flattened to cut crash risk through the canyon. Planners are also advancing a design that would lower US‑89 so it passes beneath US‑6 at Thistle, separating traffic and improving flow at a notorious junction.
What crews will build
The $53.4 million Sheep Creek project will widen US‑6 from two lanes to four, install a center median barrier, soften tight curves, and improve the Sheep Creek Road intersection, according to UDOT. Drivers should plan on daytime lane closures and brief delays while crews are working. “This stretch of US‑6 is squarely on our radar,” UDOT Region Three Director Rob Clayton said in the announcement, underscoring how closely the agency is watching safety in the canyon.
Scope, maps and schedule
Project information from UDOT shows the Chicken Hollow–Tie Fork work runs roughly from milepost 189.5 to 201.4 and will add acceleration and deceleration lanes that tie into Sheep Creek Road. Construction began on January 5 and is expected to wrap up in early 2027, as outlined on UDOT. On the Thistle end, the agency’s design page describes a concept that keeps US‑6 at its current grade while lowering US‑89 to pass underneath, and notes the design is not yet final; see UDOT for details.
UDOT also shared a corridor diagram and photos in a February 5 Facebook post that show milepost annotations and recent median and drainage work along the route; to see the visuals, check the post from UDOT on Facebook.
Funding and corridor background
More than $110 million is currently programmed for near‑term safety improvements between Spanish Fork and Helper, with nearly $20 million set aside for pavement preservation between Wellington and I‑70, according to UDOT. The new work follows upgrades installed last year that included thousands of feet of median barrier, additional drainage systems, and new overhead lighting, all intended to reduce serious crashes in the canyon.
What drivers should expect
Motorists can expect weekday work hours, lane shifts, and short daytime delays while crews install new pavement, median elements, and lighting. Many project pages list typical work times at about 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., so daytime trips are most likely to be affected. Several outlets covering earlier phases noted UDOT pauses heavy construction around major travel weekends to ease congestion, as reported by Hoodline. Travelers are encouraged to check conditions before heading into the canyon and to build in extra time on busy days.
How to follow the work
UDOT has posted maps, timelines, and contact information on its project pages and is urging the public to sign up for email updates and use the agency’s real‑time traffic tools when traveling US‑6. The Facebook post embedded above includes the agency’s corridor diagram along with photos from recent median and drainage work. For immediate travel information, drivers can visit UDOT’s traffic site or the agency’s construction updates before heading into Spanish Fork Canyon.
