Stretch of Logan Canyon sees high number of accidents


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LOGAN — It may be one of the prettiest drives in Utah, but traveling through Logan Canyon can also be very dangerous.

Lt. Lee Perry of the Utah Highway Patrol, who has been with UHP for 28 years, understands that danger as well as anyone.

"It's a narrow canyon," Perry said. "And people have to focus on their driving in that canyon."

A total of three crashes occurred there Monday within a two-mile stretch of road, each unrelated to the other. Investigators believe the drivers were simply driving too fast.

Accidents happen all the time along that road near mile marker 475, according to UHP. The Utah Department of Transportation has tried to make certain stretches of the canyon safer by installing cable barriers, guardrails, rumble strips and have even laid a high-friction surface.

Ultimately, much of the responsibility to be safe has to come from drivers.

"In that canyon, five miles an hour can be the difference between maintaining control and what we saw yesterday: losing control and ending up in the river, or something worse."

Though four accidents happened in the canyon in a two-day span, none were fatal. However, fatalities occur in Logan Canyon all the time — many of them avoidable, according to UHP.

"People need to follow those speed limits," Perry said. "And that's what we find most often is people are pushing that speed limit."

With snow in the forecast, it's a good reminder to use caution when driving Utah's roads.

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Alex Cabrero

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