UDOT Unveils New Runaway Truck Ramp In Garden City

GARDEN CITY, Utah – Officials with the Utah Department of Transportation hoped to fix a dangerous intersection near Bear Lake with the help of a runaway truck ramp.

The new ramp was unveiled Thursday in Garden City.

UDOT officials said there was a lot more technology at work at the spot than in most runaway truck ramps. A series of pulleys was added, to essentially catch a truck that runs in here.

Six semi trucks have lost control heading down the hill over the past two years. Five of them crashed.

It’s what’s at the bottom of the road, following an eight-percent grade, that was the reason for the new runaway ramp.

Five semis in two years, have crashed at the bottom of the hill near Bear Lake. Now, a high-tech runaway ramp is complete, that UDOT hopes will prevent future accidents. How it works, and why some worry it may not be enough to protect people and property down below. @KSL5TV 5&6pm pic.twitter.com/h5bkf2Pzy9

— Mike Anderson (@mikeandersonKSL) October 8, 2020

The crashes happened at the intersection of U.S. 89 and State Route 30, better known as Raspberry Square.

Residents said it has historically been a busy spot, especially during tourist season.

Shop owner Norm Mechan told KSL TV he remained concerned the ramp may not be enough to keep the area safe, saying the truck driver still has to exercise the good judgment to use it.

“The ramp, as you look at it, is dependent on the drivers, being comfortable taking it, (and) making that split-second decision to take it, rather than try to run it out,” he said.

Mecham and his wife own a shop that was damaged by a semi after it went through the intersection and slammed into his building.

It will again become a place of work for the Mechams. They’ve decided to rebuild their shop.

“It was an easy decision to make, but difficult to kind of become comfortable with it,” he said.

While the new ramp built up the hill offered some protection, Mecham said he was not willing to depend on it.

“It’s not only a gift shop, but it’s also a real estate office. We lease to a number of people, and so I’m a bit uncomfortable with people living and working there, you know, spending their time there,” he said.

After seeing several semis lose control over the past couple of years, he believed they’ll still have to do something to keep people safe.

“We’ll have to do some stop-barriers of some kind,” he said.

Barriers would cost him, but it’s something he said he’ll have to do.

UDOT project manager, Tom Roylance, said they were taking additional measures, as well.

“Up at the top of the hill, we have a brake check area, where a trucker really needs to get out of his truck, and inspect his vehicle,” Roylance said. “We have signs that we’ve added, to direct the truck drivers to use low gear.”

Once the runaway ramp gets used by a driver, UDOT engineers said work crews can replace the catch system, getting it up and ready again in about nine hours.

In that first crash, two years ago, a sporting goods store was taken out. The truck driver was killed.

No one else has been lost since then.

“We’re just incredibly fortunate – lucky – I don’t know what you want to call it,” Mecham said.

Mecham said his shop will be ready to reopen in time for next spring.