Cautionary tale on U.S. 6

Eight months ago, state road crews repaired a 70-foot crater in U.S. 6 after a tanker carrying explosives rolled and blasted a huge hole in the highway. On Monday, it was a double tanker carrying gasoline that rolled and exploded — a mere 25 feet from the site of the August accident. The truck driver died Wedneday after suffering burns over 90 percent of his body. After the accident, the road was closed for more than six hours. Repairs are ongoing.

U.S. 6 has long been considered one of the most dangerous highways in Utah, if not the nation. The Utah Department of Transportation has spent $15 million on safety improvements over the past eight years, adding passing lanes and expanding shoulders, among other projects. Large-scale improvements, such as widening the road to four lanes, would cost more than $1 billion. But parts of the highway are bordered by rock formations, a river and a railway, which limits UDOT's options.

Absent the funding for a big fix, driver safety on U.S. 6 depends largely on drivers. Anyone who travels the highway needs to be aware of possible hazards and should heed posted speed limits and other warning signs. UDOT needs to speed up its plans to implement an "early warning" system to the Red Narrows curves of U.S. 6 to remind speeding motorists to slow down.

The hazards of U.S. 6 are well known. Thirteen people perished in accidents along the highway last year, the highest number since 1998. Some local residents want a greater commitment on the part of Utah legislators, who hold the state's purse strings, and from UDOT to improve the safety of the highway. A bill filed by Rep. James Ferrin, R-Orem, to permit the state to bond for $1.3 billion to widen U.S. 6 was amended in committee but was not considered in either the House or the Senate this past legislative session.

Monday's accident should prompt further discussion about what the state should do — and what it reasonably can afford to do — about U.S. 6. In the meantime, UDOT should fast-track warning systems and drivers should acquaint themselves with the hazards of the dangerous highway and drive accordingly.