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LOGAN — Logan’s Main Street is well traveled. It is one of the few ways to get through the Cache Valley, and it's not hard for police to see why it's so prone to collisions — hundreds of them a year.
"It's nothing really new to us,” said Logan Police Lieutenant Jeff Simmons. “We work these streets all the time, especially Main Street. We’re aware that several hundred accidents every year occur there."
But what was a bit surprising, Simmons said, is the fact that the north end inside Logan City earned the top spot of the most dangerous roads, in terms of the number of accidents. Two more sections of Main Street made the fourth and eighth spots as well.
"Failure to yield, following too close, improper lookout because your eyes are somewhere else — those are the biggest causes of accidents here on Main Street,” Simmons said.
That's why four officers, like Denny Bird, focus patrolling this street each day.
“Half of our accidents are on Main Street, just these 4.7 miles,” Bird said.
Bird said it doesn't take long to spot people with their eyes on something other than the road in front of them.
"A lot of times what will happen is that they stop at the light, and you just see their heads go down and they're on their device,” Bird said. “But when the light turns green and the traffic starts moving, they're not quite finished."
Like many people, police would like to see road improvements like more lanes and maybe a median. But they say drivers still need to do their part.
“Anytime you're taking your eyes off of the 10 to 12 seconds of roadway ahead of you, then you are now a distracted driver,” Simmons said.
Police said they just finished a sting operation where they patrolled a construction area in an unmarked car. They said to expect more of those in the coming months.
Contributing: Xoel Cardenas
