Utah Traffic Fatalities are Lowest in Thirty-Five Years

Posted By Ron Kramer on January 20, 2010

In 2009, Utah residents saw the fewest traffic fatalities in 35 years. Across the state, 245 people were killed in traffic related fatalities as reported by the Utah Department of Transportation. This number is an 11 percent drop since 2008 and a 34 percent drop since 2000. The last time Utah had fewer than 245 traffic fatalities was in 1974, during the heart of the nation’s oil crisis.

Officials attribute the drop in fatalities to several key factors, including an increase in public transportation options, improved driver safety courses, new safety measures on state roads and extensive public awareness campaigns.

Although Utah residents should be happy with the progress, UDOT executive director, John Njord reminds that a majority of the fatalities were still preventable, and 245 lives were still lost. “The numbers show great progress, but I will never feel comfortable saying that 245 people died on our roads. Even if we get to 100 fatalities or 50 fatalities or five fatalities, we won’t be satisfied until we can say that there were zero fatalities on Utah’s roads,” he said.

According to standard.net, UDOT analyzed the 245 fatalities in 2009 and found that 19 were fatigue-related, 29 involved impaired driving, 67 were speed-related and 96 were attributed to drivers who were not wearing their seatbelts. A total of 196 of the 245 fatalities were on dry roads.

Ron Kramer is a Salt Lake City, Utah personal injury attorney with offices in Bountiful, Draper and Provo, Utah.

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