YDOT consultants outline Wind River Canyon resilience study, seek local input on redundant routes and safety fixes
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Summary
Consultants hired by YDOT briefed Fremont County commissioners on a RAISE‑funded study of the Wind River Canyon corridor (MP 103–130), emphasizing geotechnical risks, traffic and safety analysis, and a redundant‑routes screening that will run into 2026 with recommendations later next year.
Lyle DeVries and Jody Snyder, managers for the consulting team hired by the Wyoming Department of Transportation, presented an overview of a RAISE‑funded Wind River Corridor study intended to improve resilience and reliability on Highway 20 through the Wind River Canyon.
DeVries described the study’s dual focus: first, assessing and recommending ways to keep the existing canyon highway open and safer (traffic and safety, geohazards and roadway design); second, identifying feasible redundant or alternate routes to preserve north–south connectivity when the canyon is impassable. The consultant team said the canyon study area is roughly Mile Post 103 to Mile Post 130.
Jody Snyder emphasized three technical workstreams that will feed the recommendations: traffic and highway safety analysis, geotechnical and geohazard assessment (rockfall, slope stability, tunnel constraints) and roadway design concepts. The team has begun mapping problem areas and is screening a broad longlist of potential alternate routes; they cautioned many options will be infeasible in the rugged terrain and that any viable redundant route must be screened for environmental, cultural and cost constraints.
The consultants also described outreach plans: continued coordination with an interdisciplinary (ID) technical team that includes county representatives, tribal interests and federal land managers; a public engagement phase with virtual and in‑person events; and a project website and social media updates. They noted a near‑term schedule: system condition assessment through late 2025, alternatives development and screening in 2026, and final recommendations by the end of calendar 2026.
Commissioners and attendees raised local concerns during a robust Q&A: heavy truck traffic and truck speeds through narrow canyon sections, limited space for turnouts and pull‑outs, poor pull‑off surfacing that deters drivers from using designated pullouts, lighting inside tunnels, and HazMat considerations because the canyon is the only direct route in many conditions. Several commissioners recommended the consultants coordinate with State Parks, Wyoming Game and Fish and tribal Game and Fish to capture ecological and recreation impacts and stressed the importance of including hospital and emergency‑response needs in route planning.
What happens next: the consultant team will continue system mapping and screening, engage the ID team and stakeholders, begin public outreach in coming months, and return with prioritized alternatives and cost estimates as the study advances.
