We’ve definitely seen warmer temperatures outdoors this week and many folks in the county are out enjoying the sunny summer like weather. Carbon County Sheriff Jeff Wood wanted to speak about ATV/UTV safety.

“I think its awesome that we live in the area that we live in. We have designated ATV/UTV routes that are actually roads but I want to caution parents that their young kids shouldn’t be out on the roads riding ATVs/UTVs ,” said Sheriff Wood. Although most recreational vehicles are street legal doesn’t mean that children are allowed to ride all over town unsupervised.

The Sheriff’s Department has observed children using the ATV/UTV designated roadways, especially on Carbonville Road going into Spring Glen. “What a bad spot right there at the Blue Cut; you’ve got merging traffic right there, and that’s not part of the ATV/UTV route but we’re seeing a lot of kids that are inexperienced and really shouldn’t be on the roads anyway that are riding through that area,” explained Sheriff Wood. This can be a difficult area to maneuver around even in a regular automobile. The Sheriff’s Office will step up patrol in this area so that they can speak with those individuals that are using this highway as an ATV/UTV route.

“You know if you’re going to ride your ATVs/UTVs on the highway, on those designated routes, if you’re not going to a trail, you can take them to a trailhead but if you’re just leisurely riding you can do that but they need to be street legal and need to be insured,” stated Sheriff Wood. Although an ATV/UTV is street legal the operator of the machine must follow and obey all traffic laws while on public roads.

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