Red Light Running Law Passes Committee in Utah House
Have you ever been stuck at a red light with no traffic? A new law in Utah would allow vehicles to go through a red-light if the driver stops first, and safety looks in all directions. House Bill 416 was suggested to Representative Ken Ivory by a constituent.
Red Light Law
“He was on his way to the airport, stuck at a red light- we’ve all been there-,” said Rep. Ivory as he told the constituent’s story. “The red light was terminal; one after another after another and nobody is here, nobody is here. He went through the red light. There was a police officer in a parking lot nearby. Got a ticket. Went to court to defend the ticket and said (to the judge) ‘look there was no one there. I looked all around there wasn’t anyone around,’ and the judge told him there is no common sense clause in the statute. This is the common sense clause."
As expected, U-Dot opposes the bill.
"This is part of the legislative process," they said in a statement. "We do have concerns with where this bill is headed. Giving people the opportunity to run a red light, for whatever reason, is a safety risk. Crashes and deaths at intersections are the most common type of crash and continue to be of significant concern in Utah, and this bill creates additional confusing and potentially unsafe situations."
The bill passed out of a House committee meeting and will soon go to the full house for a vote. I personally disagree with this bill, but it will be interesting to see if it will become a law.
