1. Where does the crash data come from?
The data for the Utah Crash Summary and Utah Crash Fact Sheets is derived from Utah crash reports. These reports are completed by law enforcement officers throughout the state who collect data from crash scenes on public roadways. Information is collected when a crash involved injuries, fatalities, or at least $1,000 property damage; when the jurisdiction in which the crash occurs requires it; or when the responding officer determines that a report is warranted. After being received at the Utah Department of Public Safety, crash reports are forwarded to the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) for central collection. UDOT reviews the crash report forms and enters the data into the Crash Analysis Reporting System (CARS) database. Additional fatal crash information is collected at the Department of Public Safety’s Highway Safety Office and compiled into the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) database. FARS data is collected in every state, and sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (http://www.fars-nhtsa.dot.gov).

2. What about crashes that occur on private property?
Beginning in 1997, private property crashes were no longer collected in the Crash Analysis Reporting System (CARS) database. Since private property crashes accounted for approximately 10% of crashes in previous years, the decrease in crashes since 1997 is due in part to the exclusion of private property crashes.