Here are some Utah traffic laws you may need to brush up on
Nov 7, 2024, 1:00 PM
Southbound traffic on Interstate 215 near 4700 South is being diverted because of a box truck that caught fire Wednesday afternoon. Drivers in the Beehive State have several challenges on the road, including trying to learn and remember all of Utah’s odd road laws. (UDOT)
(UDOT)
SALT LAKE CITY — Drivers in the Beehive State face several challenges on the road. These include trying to learn and remember all of Utah’s odd road laws.
Traffic laws and emergency vehicles
Many people may ask what to do when they stop at a light and an emergency vehicle comes up behind them. Should they stay, or should they go? Utah Highway Patrol Lt. Cameron Roden said that’s a little tricky because it depends on the situation.
“You’ve got some type of emergency vehicle coming up on your left and they’re trying to respond to something,” he said. “If you’re able to, move over safely. If you can’t do it safely, then don’t do it.”
He said emergency vehicles would never want you to put anyone in danger to get out of their way.
Additionally, not everyone knows what to do when you’re getting off the freeway and suddenly you see the lights or an emergency vehicle flashing in the rearview mirror.
“We don’t want to ever put anyone in danger. So, if it’s not safe for them to pull over at that spot, we understand,” Roden said. “If you see a spot where the road widens, just enough that the officer can pass you on the left, then slow down as much as you can, move over as far as you can and just let him go around.”
Keep up on your vehicle’s maintenance
Roden said if you’re driving with a great big crack in your windshield and a police officer pulls you over, don’t be surprised. Even though annual vehicle inspections have been done away in Utah, enforcement of vehicle maintenance has not.
“People think that because we don’t have to have our vehicles inspected as often that all of those laws have gone away but that’s not true,” Roden said.
He said all the laws that were associated with a vehicle safety inspection are still in effect.
“It’s just that you don’t actually have to have your vehicle inspected,” Roden said. “So, as far as a cracked windshield or tire violations or all these other things that you had to go have your vehicle inspected for, those laws are still in place … Now it’s up to law enforcement to go out and enforce those laws.”
He said that’s especially true at this time of year with winter driving conditions starting. He said everyone needs to make sure there’s enough tread on their tires to maintain control in the snow and ice.
Traffic laws when switching lanes
What if a driver is stuck in the turn lane waiting for the light to change? Do they have to keep their blinker going? Lt. Roden said the answer is yes.
“If you’re going to be changing lanes, or turning or leaving your lane, going to a different roadway or whatever, you’re required to have your signal on for at least two seconds before doing so,” he said.
Most drivers know not to cross the double white line into the HOV lane on the freeway. But what happens when a Highway Patrol Trooper is behind you and needs to get by? Can you cross that double white line?
“People know they’re not supposed to cross that double white line but [when] they’ve got that emergency vehicle behind them that’s trying to get by, it’s okay,” Roden said. “So whether you’re getting pulled over [or] if [they’re] just trying to go by to a crash, you’re actually receiving a lawful command by a police officer to do something … So, moving to the right is the thing to do.”
Roden said troopers experience this daily. There are now signs along the freeway. These signs tell people it’s okay to cross over the double white line to clear the path for emergency vehicles.
What about ‘left lane loafers?’
Roden said troopers get a lot of different questions. However, there’s one question by far they’re asked most often. Why don’t officers stop people from clogging up the left lane?
“We actually do stop them but we also have a lot of other things that we’re looking for,” Roden said. “Being in a marked patrol car, it’s not always easy to spot that left lane loafer … No one wants to pass that police officer and be the one that gets pulled over. So, you get a lot of people that end up getting clogged up behind.”
He said it’s up to officers to decide what’s most important.
“We do enforce it, but we’ve got a lot of things that we are looking for,” Roden said. “Sometimes people just want to use that left lane to go really fast … too fast ultimately, and we know speed is one of our number one cause of crashes here in Utah.”
Devin Oldroyd contributed to this story.
Don Brinkerhoff is a reporter and producer for KSL NewsRadio.
