Utah Highway Patrol Public Information Officer Cameron Roden said the biggest problem with this week’s storm has been US-40 in between Quinn’s Junction and Heber near the Jordanelle.
“We’ve seen about six to seven crashes in that area," he said. "Luckily, nothing major, no life threatening injuries or anything like that, but several crashes in that area.”
Roden said that area has consistently been a slick spot for drivers, and the best thing everyone can do is slow down.
“The roads have been snowy, but also when they look like they’re improving, a lot of times there’s still the possibility for that black ice. With as much moisture we’ve received and these cold temperatures, it’s going to make for black ice.”
He said outside of a couple accidents, Parleys Canyon hasn’t particularly been a problem for highway patrol. A traction device requirement for semi trucks in the canyon went into effect Tuesday morning around 3 a.m., but expired hours later. He said the most serious incidents on I-80 have been a couple of slide-offs near Echo in northern Summit County.
Roden said drivers and passengers should make sure they have their seatbelts on, and be wary of wildlife. Many animals tend to travel to lower elevations as the snowpack grows, he said.
“As you’re approaching accident scenes, we want to make sure our first responders stay safe. Make sure you slow down even more at these scenes because we know we already have slick roads in this location, vehicles have already crashed.
"We don’t want to add to that problem by having first responders and other personnel get hit. So make sure you slow down and give them as much space as possible.”
Roden said in his 20 years with the department, it’s been an above average winter in terms of snow and workload.
Summit County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Felicia Sotelo said her team has only seen a couple of vehicle accidents in the past 24 hours, noting that they weren’t confined to any particular area. She recommended drivers allow for more time to get to their destination, and give other vehicles extra space.
Park City Police Department Public Information Officer Jay Randall said outside of a few slide-offs on Marsac Avenue, travel has been good so far given this storm’s snow totals.
A crash near Peoa involving two cars Tuesday morning did not result in any injuries but did cause slight traffic delays. A driver also reported several slide offs on SR-248 near Hideout Monday evening.
As of Tuesday afternoon, both Cottonwood Canyons are open, but traction devices are required. That means for all wheel drive and four wheel drive vehicles, mud and snow tires are the minimum requirement. Chains or 3 peak mountain snowflake (3PMSF) tires are also acceptable, and are the minimum requirement for vehicles with two wheel drive.
Traffic in Little Cottonwood Canyon closed Monday night, and did not reopen until 9:30 a.m. due to controlled avalanche mitigation work.
The Park City School District started school two hours late Tuesday due to winter road conditions.
Snowy conditions are expected to continue, with the Winter Storm Warning for the Wasatch Back set to expire 5 p.m. Wednesday.
