SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Department of Public Safety has released its annual report for 2024.
In the report, the department compared statistics to the prior year of 2023. While some of the findings posed concerns regarding road safety, other trends were positive.
Utah Highway Patrol DUI arrests went up 9.6 percent from 2023 to 2024. Reckless driving, which is considered going 105 miles per hour or more, went up 39 percent. However, UHP said that number is inflated because the road rage law was enacted mid-year in 2023. The number of wrong-way crashes grew in 2024, up 42% from 2023.
The report found some positive changes, such as the number of fatal crashes UHP responded to in 2024 falling 11% from the year prior.
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“A lot of people are moving into the state of Utah, and that's a large factor into what we are seeing," said Maj. Jeff Nigbur, the assistant superintendent for UHP. "We have seen a large increase in vehicle miles traveled."
The report also found July of 2024 to be the deadliest month on record on Utah roads. According to Nigbur, most of the crashes are preventable. The five reasons for all crashes were following too closely, failure to yield the right of way, failure to keep in the proper lane, unsafe lane changes, and disregarding traffic signals.
“This is not something that we can force our way out of," Nigbur said. "We really need the public's help to make good decisions when they get behind the wheel."
DRIVEN TO CHANGE
