Agreement brings bus, microtransit services to Wasatch, Summit counties

By Logan Stefanich

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    HEBER CITY (KSL) — Folks looking to utilize public transportation services in Wasatch County will now be able to do so for the first time ever.

Wasatch County and High Valley Transit on Tuesday announced that they have entered a three-year, $3 million agreement to offer public bus transit services between Wasatch and Summit counties, along with microtransit services throughout the Heber Valley.

Dallin Koecher, executive director of Heber Valley Chamber, said there’s a tremendous demand for public transit in Heber Valley with a leading factor being the labor shortage in the area.

“We wanted to start something to help transport people back and forth, to help labor move back and forth between Park City and Heber Valley,” Koecher said.

Additionally, having public transportation options in the valley will better accommodate the visitors that descend upon the area.

“If they don’t have a car, it’s hard for them to come here,” Koecher said. “Now it’s nice that maybe they can take a shuttle or something from the airport and come to Heber Valley and they don’t necessarily need a car because now they can take the bus.”

Funding for the expansion project was provided by a sales tax the Wasatch County Council approved in June, making this new transit service free for all users.

High Valley Transit already provides transportation services throughout Summit County, but the new service runs from Heber Valley Hospital on the south end of Heber Valley and includes stops near Walmart, Holiday Lanes Bowling and Wasatch Commons Apartments, before going on to Park City Medical Center with the final stop at Fresh Market on Park Avenue in Park City.

Along with transporting people throughout Wasatch and Summit counties, Koecher is hopeful that this new service will help ease growing pains throughout the Wasatch Back.

“We’re growing pretty fast. This is just another tool to help with alleviating traffic congestion. The fewer cars that are on the road, the better it is for all of us,” Koecher said.

Initially, there will be five outbound runs in the mornings from Heber Valley to Park City and three inbound runs in the evenings from Park City to Heber Valley.

The 106 Wasatch Back Connector route between Heber Valley and Park City currently offers five daily morning departures from Heber City at 6 a.m., 7 a.m., 8 a.m., 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. and three daily afternoon departures from Heber City at 4 p.m., 5 p.m., and 7 p.m.

Once riders arrive in Park City, they can easily connect to the Park City public transit system into Old Town or out to Kimball Junction. For the return schedule from Park City returning to Heber Valley, there are three daily morning return routes from Park City at 7 a.m., 8 a.m., and 9 a.m. and five daily evening return routes from Park City at 3 p.m., 4 p.m., 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Another aspect of the expansion includes free microtransit services. Microtransit functions similarly to Uber or Lyft, but it’s completely free through High Valley Transit.

Once a ride is requested (which can be done through High Valley Transit’s mobile app), riders wait an average of between five and 15 minutes for the driver to arrive at their requested pick-up location; the driver then takes them anywhere within the Heber Valley microtransit service area. Rides can hold up to four passengers and it’s possible to share a ride with other passengers headed in the same direction.

“I actually used it yesterday to get to and from work and it was so slick,” Koecher said. “The fact that it was free — I didn’t have to add my credit card to the app or anything — it was really cool.”

There is also an option to select vehicles with racks to transport recreation equipment for people looking to ski and snowboard during winter seasons and mountain bike the rest of the year.

In order for this service to be offered now — while tax dollars are still being accumulated for the free transit service — the Heber Valley Hospital made a financial contribution through its community benefit program to Wasatch County in support of High Valley Transit and to aid in building a Wasatch County transportation program.

This investment will help offset the operational costs to ensure the residents of Heber Valley have transportation to access health care.

“Intermountain Healthcare works closely with local government agencies and other area nonprofits to mitigate social and environmental factors that contribute to inequities in health care or negatively impact the health of our community,” Si Hutt, administrator at Heber Valley Hospital, said in a statement. “We know that lack of transportation creates a barrier to receiving needed health care services for some people, and we are excited that High Valley Transit will be operating in Wasatch County to help remove this barrier.”

People can find out more about High Valley Transit, transit schedules and how to utilize microtransit here.

“I’d love more visitors and more residents, really, to take advantage of it,” Koecher said. “The fewer cars we have out on the road, the better for our environment, better for our growth. A lot of great things can happen if we take this transit and use it.”

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