Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Utah has witnessed a surge in fatal road accidents, with 31 deadly crashes since Labor Day and 16 deaths just in the past week.
- Experts emphasize that driver behavior, such as speeding and not staying in the correct lane, is entirely preventable.
- Drivers are urged to slow down, avoid distractions and remain alert, regardless of favorable weather conditions.
SALT LAKE CITY— Utah is seeing a spike in deadly crashes on the road with 31 fatal crashes since Labor Day, and 16 deaths just in the last week. State crash experts with Utah's Zero Fatalities campaign believe it's a trend drivers can reverse.
Deadly crashes, one after the other. A car hit by a train near Idaho, a head-on crash following a police chase in West Valley, on Wednesday morning a driver reportedly asleep at the wheel crashed into a parked car in Salt Lake City and slammed into a woman on the sidewalk.
"It must've been going rather fast because it pushed her car probably more than 20 feet up over the curb," Heather Diana, a friend of the car owner, said.
It's alarming for neighbors who witness the crashes and for Utah's Zero Fatalities campaign organizers. They're extremely concerned over 16 deaths in seven days.
"That's 16 funerals that need to be planned. Our families are missing someone at the dinner table tonight, our communities truly are hurting," Jason Mettmann, Utah Highway Safety Office communications manager, said.
Mettmann said Utah's good weather may have more drivers on the road, but the problem is bad behavior behind the wheel. He said the top factors for our recent deadly crashes are speeding, following too close, and not staying in the right lane — which are all 100% avoidable.
"We see this behavior out on the roads year after year, and impaired driving is a choice, speeding is a choice, not driving alert is a choice," Mettmann said.
He's asking drivers to choose to slow down, put away distractions, drive alert, and look for people crossing the street. Those shaken up by recent deadly crashes hope they do.
"It's definitely given me second thoughts. This isn't the first accident that I've seen at this particular spot, people hitting parked cars," Diana said.
State crash experts said the vast majority of these recent crashes happened on clear, sunny days with dry roads. So, just because conditions outside look good, drivers should not let their guard down, the experts said.
