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Officials weigh in on how to deal with driving in winter storms

Posted at 9:23 PM, Feb 19, 2018
and last updated 2018-02-19 23:46:52-05

SALT LAKE CITY - It seems Utah has a love/hate relationship with the snow. It’s amazing if you are a skier or snowboarder looking for the greatest snow on Earth. It’s considerably less amazing if you have to drive to work in twenty inches of fresh powder.

“Folks really need to remember the safe following distances, making sure their vehicle is properly equipped and they have good tires on their car,” said Lisa Miller, a UDOT Spokesperson.

Monday morning, snow blanketed much of northern Utah. By 3:30 p.m. Monday afternoon, Utah Highway Patrol reported 458 crashes in counties along the Wasatch Front. Four troopers were hit in their cars, none were injured.

UDOT has its own app (available on Apple and Android) to help people plan their commute. On snow days, you can also get a real-time look at the efforts to clear the roads.

“Within that app, there is a layer where you can see the plow movements, so you can almost track the movement of the storm by where our plows are working,” said Miller.

If you are headed up for a day on the slopes, it may also be worth checking the @CanyonAlerts Twitter feed. It’s operated by Unified Police Department.

“It gives canyon road status. If we need to close the canyon, like today we had to do multiple times,” said Lt. Brian Lohrke with Unified Police Department.