UDOT says they will build a runaway truck ramp at the intersection of US-89 and SR 30 in Garden City. FILE PHOTO: A dump truck hauling asphalt lost its brakes coming east down NB SR-89 (MM 499) at the T-intersection of N Bear Lake Blvd. in Garden City. (Photo credit: Matt Rascon, Steven Breinholt)
GARDEN CITY, Utah — Several bad crashes near Bear Lake have prompted UDOT to build a new runaway truck ramp in the area.
A representative of the Utah Department of Transportation says they will build the runaway truck ramp on US 89 as it comes into Garden City. That’s the intersection with SR 30.
“More people are flocking to Garden City and Bear Lake every year. Seeing some of the videos of trucks that have blown through the intersection and couldn’t stop, and then ended up in businesses there, it’s something we needed to take action on,” said UDOT spokesman John Gleason.
Last August, two large semis ran through the red lights and crashed within a week of each other. In 2018, a truck driver was killed in a crash in that spot.
Gleason says the ramp will be a little different than others. It will have a slope to slow down vehicles, but also concrete to guide the runaway trucks into the right position. Then it will use cable restraints to stop the trucks. The semis will hit the cables, and those cables will wrap around the trucks, causing them to lose speed and eventually stop.
The project needed to get right-of-ways and the proper funding, but is now out for bid.
“The hope is we will be able to start here very soon, in the next couple of months. This is something we want to start work on right away,” Gleason said.
The area is growing more popular. The area has about 25 percent more traffic today than it did 20 years ago.
“It’s an important project. we wanted to make sure truck drivers were safe, people on the roads were safe, and people living in that area of Garden City were safe,” said Gleason.