Ask anyone in northern Utah County how their day is going and there is a decent chance the answer involves a road. Not a person. Not a feeling. A road. You will hear people say "Pioneer Crossing" the way other people say "my ex." Someone says "the Point" and everyone in the room quietly nods, like you all survived the same thing. Because you did. Most of you survive it twice a day.
I have spent 16 years in Lehi, and I love it here. I also think the commute is the single most underestimated part of choosing a home in this valley. You will spend three weekends comparing countertops and about four minutes thinking about the drive you will make roughly five hundred times a year. The countertop does not care how your day went. The drive does.
I learned that lesson in a very unglamorous way. One stormy night, Kyli and I were on I-15. That is the whole setup. There was weather, there were brake lights, and there was a dad pretending to be calm because Kyli was watching. When that road stops, you do not get a vote. You just get to know your windshield wipers really well. Nobody who has lived here a while will be surprised by that story. That is kind of the point.
So loving a place honestly means telling you the hard parts too. Here are the routes people complain about the most, why, and what I would actually do about it if I were you.
One thing up front: these are my own opinions as a Lehi REALTOR with Olympus Real Estate. I am not a traffic engineer, and I am not going to make up drive times. Traffic changes with construction, weather, school calendars and whether someone decided to stall in the left lane during a snow squall. For real time conditions and project details, check UDOT's traffic site and project pages.
The routes people love to hate
These are not ranked by science. They are ranked by how often I hear a sigh before the name.
- I-15 through Lehi and the Point of the Mountain. This is the main connection between Utah County and Salt Lake County, which means it is everybody's road. When it flows, it is great. When something happens near the Point, it does not matter how nice your kitchen is. You are now a person who lives on I-15 for a while. Ask Kyli. The upside is that it is the most direct route north and south, and it gets a lot of attention from UDOT for that reason.
- Timpanogos Highway (SR-92). It runs east from I-15 in Lehi through Highland and up into American Fork Canyon, and a lot of the Silicon Slopes crowd uses it to get to and from work. It is a gorgeous drive with the mountain right in front of you. It is less gorgeous when you have been looking at that same mountain for a while at a stoplight. Lots of jobs in one area plus a limited number of ways in and out equals rush hour you can feel.
- Pioneer Crossing (SR-145). This is the east and west link between I-15 in American Fork and Redwood Road in Saratoga Springs, running through Lehi on the way. It is one of the main reasons the west side of the lake is reachable at all, which is why so many of you use it at the same time. UDOT opened an extra lane in each direction in May 2026 and is converting it to Flex Lanes, where the number of lanes in each direction changes with rush hour, with that work expected to wrap up by the end of 2026. If you live west of the Jordan River and work east of I-15, you probably have opinions about this road. Strong ones. Now they come with overhead signals.
- 2100 North in Lehi. Right now this one is less of a commute route and more of a construction lifestyle. UDOT is building a 2.8 mile freeway on 2100 North connecting I-15 to Mountain View Corridor, with construction that started in March 2026 and is expected to run through late 2028 (UDOT calls that preliminary). I wrote a whole post on it, so I will not repeat myself here: The 2100 North Freeway in Lehi: What It Really Means. Short version: probably better later, definitely louder now.
- Redwood Road. For a lot of you on the west side, Redwood Road is the backup plan and also the main plan. It is a long north and south route with lots of signals and lots of new rooftops along it. When I-15 or Mountain View Corridor gets ugly, Redwood is where everyone goes to share the experience.
- Mountain View Corridor (SR-85). This one is a little unfair to include, because a lot of people genuinely like it. It moves traffic along the west side and has made some drives much better. In December 2025, UDOT opened its first true freeway section, about four miles from 2100 North in Lehi to Porter Rockwell Boulevard in Bluffdale. More phases are still planned, including the stretch south of 2100 North and the next piece north in Salt Lake County, so it is very much a work in progress. The complaint I hear is usually about getting on and off it. It is a road with potential. Like a teenager.
What this actually means for choosing where to live
Here is the uncomfortable truth. There is no secret neighborhood in northern Utah County with no traffic, big yards, new construction, a low price and a five minute drive to your office. If you find it, call me, because I would like to move there too.
What you can do is choose your tradeoff on purpose instead of by accident. Here is how I would think about it.
- Start with where you actually go, not where the house is. Write down your work address, your partner's work address if that applies, the gym, the grocery store, church, wherever you go weekly. The best house is often the one that keeps most of that on the same side of the main bottlenecks.
- Figure out which bottleneck you are signing up for. Most homes here come with a main road attached, whether the listing mentions it or not. West of I-15, it might be Pioneer Crossing, Redwood or Mountain View Corridor. Up toward the mountain, it might be Timpanogos Highway. Heading north, it is almost always the Point. Pick the bottleneck you can live with.
- Drive it at the real time. Drive your actual commute on a Tuesday around 7:30 in the morning and again around 5:15 at night. Not on a Sunday. Sunday lies. Saturday also lies, just more politely.
- Count a reverse commute as a real advantage. If your job runs opposite the main flow of traffic, a home that looks far on a map might feel close in real life. The reverse is also true.
- Be honest about hybrid and remote schedules. If you only commute two days a week, a longer drive might be worth more space or a better price. If you commute five days and plan to forever, those extra minutes add up fast. You know which person you are.
- Check what is being built, not just what is there. Road projects make things worse before they make them better. UDOT and city websites post planned projects. A home near a future interchange might be a headache for two years and a great location for twenty. Or it might be noisier forever. Look at the plans before you decide.
- Consider FrontRunner if it fits your life. UTA has FrontRunner stations in both Lehi and American Fork. It does not work for everybody, but if your job is near a stop up north, it can turn commute time into reading time or nap time. I do not recommend nap time while driving.
The two sided version
Here is the part where you get to hold two true things at once.
The traffic here is real, and it is frustrating, and anyone who tells you otherwise is selling you something. It is also a result of the same thing that makes this area attractive in the first place: jobs, new homes, trails, mountains and a lot of people who decided this was a good place to be. You do not get the growth without the cones.
The roads are also getting a lot of investment. 2100 North is one example of a big project underway in Lehi right now. That does not fix tomorrow morning, but it is worth knowing when you think about where you want to be in five or ten years.
If I were you, I would stop asking "where is there no traffic?" and start asking "which traffic am I okay with, and what am I getting in exchange?" That question gets you a much better house. And probably a better mood.
Still deciding which city fits you? Take my Where should I live? quiz and start from there.
Want a shortlist based on your commute?
Send me where you work (a cross street is fine), how many days a week you go in, your price range and what kind of home you want. I will send you a free shortlist of 3 neighborhoods that fit that commute, with the honest tradeoffs for each one: which road you would live on, what is being built nearby, and what I would drive before you decide. No pressure and no spam. Just a local opinion from someone who has also sat on I-15 in the rain and questioned his choices.
Get my free 3 neighborhood commute shortlist
Franco Preston, REALTOR, Co-owner, Olympus Real Estate
FAQ
What are the worst commute routes in northern Utah County?
In my opinion, the routes people complain about most are I-15 through Lehi and the Point of the Mountain, Timpanogos Highway (SR-92), Pioneer Crossing, 2100 North during construction, and Redwood Road. Which one is worst depends on where you live and where you work.
How do I choose where to live in Utah County based on my commute?
Map where you go every week, figure out which main road or bottleneck you would use most, and drive it at real rush hour times on a weekday before you buy.
Is the 2100 North freeway going to help Lehi traffic?
UDOT is building a freeway on 2100 North connecting I-15 to Mountain View Corridor, with construction expected through late 2028 (preliminary). It is designed to improve east and west travel, but expect construction impacts until then. Check UDOT's project page for updates.
Is FrontRunner an option from Lehi or American Fork?
Yes. UTA has FrontRunner stations in both Lehi and American Fork. Check UTA's website for current schedules and whether it fits your trip.
Where can I check traffic before I go?
UDOT's traffic website and app show real time conditions, cameras and construction.