UDOT: We Need Traffic Solutions
Lately, there is a lot of dialogue about Utahns allegedly being the worst drivers in the country. I moved to Salt Lake City from Washington, D.C., in 1974. At that time, there were 1 million people in the entire state.
You could drive anywhere in the city in 20 to 25 minutes. Coming from D.C., I thought I was in heaven.
Fast forward to the present and the population has exploded, from Ogden to Spanish Fork and Heber to Salt Lake City. Interstate 15 is bumper-to-bumper traffic filled with commuters during rush hour.
I live in Murray just off of 4500 South and Van Winkle, and those roads are just like the freeway, jammed with traffic, especially during rush hour.
It seems like red lights must mean "Go" for how often they are ignored, which so often leads to collisions. But as the saying goes: "Don't bring me problems. Bring me solutions."
In my opinion, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) has not changed with the times. My pet peeve is left-hand turn signals. Drivers have become conditioned to running these lights because the signal only allow three to six cars on average, which includes cars running yellow and red lights. If you check the streets, there's collision debris in intersections from cars that run yellow and red lights.
Making a left-hand turn at State Street and 4500 South—heading south and then turning east—is a suicide mission. Drivers heading north are going 45 to 55 mph and people turning left have a short left-hand light and then a yellow light. It's very difficult to see the traffic, particularly when drivers are turning left to go to I-15 from the other lane.
UDOT needs to adapt to change and the increase in drivers to figure out some new solutions.
BARRY HECKER
Murray
"Walking the Walk," Dec. 8 Opinion
I just wanted to send some appreciation to John Rasmuson for sharing his most talented writing ability. His prose is so well-rounded that I have to read it more than once to get the full picture.
Every time I see his name below the Opinion line on page 6, I know that I'm in for a damned good read. We're so, so lucky to have him enhancing life in our great state. Appreciado!
BRENT DAYLEY
Salt Lake City
Project Censored, Part 2
Editor's Note: The Dec. 22 issue of Salt Lake City Weekly featured the first half of Project Censored's annual Top 10 list of the most suppressed, censored and otherwise under-reported news stories of the year. Part 2 of that report continues this week on Page 19. If you missed Part 1, find it online at cityweekly.net.
Care to sound off on a feature in our pages or about a local concern? Write to comments@cityweekly.net or post your thoughts on our social media. We want to hear from you!
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