It would be nice to think we can mitigate mounting traffic congestion along SR-36 by building new cross-valley roads, increasing mass transit ridership or carpooling. The reality of growth trends in our valley, however, indicates that Tooele City’s busy Main Street is likely destined to become Tooele Valley’s main street, with congestion increasing as business growth continues northward.

That trend will create longer commute times, which in turn could impact everything from the residential real estate market to economic development to our overall quality of life. But perhaps the most serious immediate impact of increased congestion on SR-36 is an increase in the total number of accidents on the road.

Certainly the widening of SR-36 in 2005 has made the highway safer. But it has also increased the variables for decisionmaking by drivers, and no decision seems to result in more high-speed accidents than the choice of whether or not to make a left-hand turn across two oncoming lanes of traffic.

The Utah Department of Transportation needs to take a hard look at the number of accidents occurring on SR-36 involving one vehicle attempting to make a left-hand turn. Anecdotally, it seems a disproportionate number of fatal crashes in recent years come from a common scenario: A driver who has inched into an intersection preparing to turn left is faced with a yellow light and oncoming traffic. That driver then must gauge the speed and distance of oncoming vehicles, and decide whether to turn ahead of their approach or let the light turn red before making the turn.

That was something like the choice 81-year-old Tooele resident George Richman was faced with last month at the intersection of SR-36 and 2400 North when he was killed by a collision with an oncoming vehicle. Although the light was green in this instance, Richman’s death was the result of misjudging the speed of approaching traffic and not having adequate time to make the left-hand turn.

We believe UDOT could eliminate many such accidents simply by installing lighted left-turn arrows at intersections along SR-36. The turn arrows might slow traffic flow slightly along the highway, but they would also provide peace of mind for commuters who face difficult left-turn scenarios every day.