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TRAFFIC REGULATIONS
The State of Utah and local towns have laws
regulating ATV use. These laws are intended to provide
for the orderly and safe use of ATV's while protecting
people, property, and the environment. Please follow
them so the privilege of ATVing will not be revoked by
the State or the Federal agencies primarily responsible
for managing the Paiute ATV Trail.
Before you arrive you need to know that ATV's owned
by residents of Utah must be registered yearly with the
Utah Division of Parks and Recreation. Residents of
other states may keep their ATV's in Utah for 14 days
without registering them, so long as the ATV's are
properly licensed or registered in the home state.
You may operate your ATV on public lands or roads
that are either signed or otherwise designated as open
by the managing agency. The Fishlake National Forest
publishes a travel map which designates Forest areas
that are open, restricted, or closed to motorized
travel. Copies of the most recent edition of this map
can be obtained from the Forest at the address listed
below. For private land, you must obtain the owner's
permission before leaving any right-of-way.
The State of Utah recognizes three age classes with
respect to driving ATV's. No one under eight years old
may operate an ATV on public roads, trails, or lands.
Drivers ages eight through sixteen years old must
possess an OHV (Off Highway Vehicle) education
certificate issued by the Utah Division of Parks and
Recreation. Drivers in this age bracket also must wear a
helmet and be accompanied and supervised by an adult
driving an ATV. The legal driving age in Utah is
sixteen. ATV drivers sixteen and older must possess a
valid drivers license or an OHV education certificate.
Education certificates are issued to anyone eight
years or older who completes the Utah Department of
Parks and Recreation OHV education course or passes an
OHV knowledge and skills test. The Division of Parks and
Recreation can be contacted at the locations listed
below. This course is highly recommended for anyone,
regardless of age, wishing to ride an ATV. It will show
you the capabilities and limitations of your machine and
will teach the importance of "treading
lightly".
Towns around the Paiute ATV Trail are unique in that
they have written ordinances permitting ATV travel on
their streets so recreationists can access needed
supplies and services. These ordinances designate which
streets are open to ATV travel and under what
conditions. Streets open to ATV's are signed in the
towns, and are shown on the Paiute ATV Trail map
published by Trails Illustrated for the Fishlake
Discovery Association. The towns also allow travel on
other streets when the rider is going directly to a
motel, service station, restaurant, or residence.
In towns the speed limit for ATV's is 10 miles per
hour All drivers must wear helmets. ATV's must be
equipped with mufflers to prevent sparks which might
start fires and to prevent the disturbance of others.
ATV's must stop at all stop and yield signs and must
travel with headlights on. Operators must travel on the
right-hand side of the road in single file.
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