SALT LAKE CITY — If you're thinking there's been more wrong-way accidents on Utah roadways this year compared to others, the numbers sadly back up that deadly assumption.
Still days away from the end of March and the state has nearly matched the total number of wrong-way deaths that occurred in all of 2023.
Video below shows Kaysville officer stopping wrong-way driver on I-15:
So far this year, the Utah Highway Patrol reports there have been five wrong-way fatalities in the state, just one less than last year's total.
The two most recent deaths came in separate incidents last week.
On March 17, a passenger in a car was killed after being struck on Legacy Parkway in Davis County by driver under investigation for being under the influence. Just days later, a wrong-way driver was killed on Interstate 15 after crashing into a bus full of ROTC cadets.
There have been a total of 8 wrong-way crashes nearly three months into the year, while there were 22 last year, but just five at this point a year ago. There were 13 wrong-way fatalities over the previous two years.
Dash cam video below shows wrong-way driver before crash on I-15:
Although the differences aren't startling, the rise is concerning to those who protect Utahns on the roads.
"Those aren't huge numbers, but it does show that we still have a problem to deal with," said Lt. Cameron Roden with the Utah Highway Patrol.
A Kaysville police was injured last month while stopping a wrong-way driver who was later arrested for driving under the influence. Just after the first of the year, a mother was killed and her infant child injured after she drove into the opposing lanes of Interstate 84 in Morgan County and slammed into a semi truck.
