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Tonya Papanikolas ReportingUDOT is currently repaving and resurfacing bridges on I-15 Northbound near Payson and Spanish Fork. Drivers say as the lanes merge, it's causing accidents.
Just this morning, a man was flown to the hospital in critical condition after swerving to miss the car in front of him, and causing a four car collision.
The speed limit from Payson to Spanish Fork along I-15 is 75 mph. But as drivers reach a UDOT construction zone, many are caught off guard as they quickly have to merge into one lane. The brake lights and the skid marks on the road prove it.
Chad Wright, Driver: "I've almost been run into once. My wife almost got run into once. And we about ran into someone once in our work truck."
KSL has discovered that 19 accidents have occurred in a four-mile stretch from Payson to Spanish Fork since the lane converging began. Though it's hard to say if all of the crashes have occurred due to that merging, we do know four have happened at the same mile marker over the last three days.
Chad Wright: "The last four times I've driven on that road, I've seen three accidents. Same thing every time. Someone running into the back of another car."
Nile Easton, UDOT Spokesman: "It's definitely a concern. A lot of people come around those corners 75-80 mph, and you have to drop down to 35-45 mph. You don't have a lot of time to do so."
UDOT says they have signs up seven miles in advance of the construction and people should be slowing down earlier. But drivers say during rush hour, the backup is so long, they don't see any signs until it's too late.
Chad Wright: "The cones are worthless, basically. They need something two or three miles ahead."
Nile Easton: "It's hard for us to predict where the que will start, cause that varies at different times of the day."
After analyzing the situation, UDOT told KSL they would be meeting to decide if they need to put up signs earlier or even lower the speed limit a few more miles in advance.
