Police warn Tremonton ATV drivers to know the law before taking to streets

By Dave Archer

October 6, 2008 | TREMONTON -- Tremonton Police Chief Dave Nance has a warning to those who drive their all-terrain vehicles (ATV) on city streets: Make sure they meet the proper requirements, or you may find yourself with a citation on your hands.

A new state ordinance that allows ATV's to be operated on streets and highways went into effect Oct. 1, but Nance said he has already seen a number of people driving ATV's before the law actually took effect.

"I've stopped five or six people coming down the road on their ATV," Nance said. "I talked to them, and the vast majority said, 'I thought it was legal to ride them now.'"

Apart from early riders, Nance said every ATV he pulled over didn't meet necessary requirements for legal use on streets.

"There are quite a few different requirements," he said. "The ATV you buy off the lot, you can't go out and ride it down the road. It has to go through a safety inspection, just like a motorcycle or car, and it has to be licensed, more than just the off-highway vehicle (OHV) registration. You have to go in and get a regular license plate, and that plate has to be affixed to the back of the ATV."

On top of licensing and safety inspections, Nance listed a slew of other requirements that must be met. Some of those requirements include having a valid driver's license to operate the ATV on the street, vehicle insurance, a head lamp on the ATV, one or more tail lamp, a light to illuminate the license plate, one or more red reflectors on the rear, electric turn signals, a horn and rear-view mirrors.

Other changes to the code include allowing riders of non-street legal ATV's to cross a street without getting off the vehicle, as long as they come to a complete stop, yield right-of-way to oncoming traffic, and cross at a right angle. ATV users can also load and unload their vehicles from a trailer legally.

For a full list of requirements, visit http://le.utah.gov/~code/FTITL41/htm/41_06a150900_(Effective_10-01-08).htm.

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