Letter: OVRs are disrupting our community. They need restrictions

A Polaris RZR is loaded into the back of a trailer in Draper for a camping trip to Palisades State Park in Sanpete County on Thursday, May 21, 2020. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

ORVs are recreational 4x4 toys designed for off-road trails. Why are they driving through our neighborhoods?

The Utah State Legislature legalized ORVs in 2008 primarily for ranchers to access their fields across the road. Since then, ORVs have evolved into a breed of recreational toy beyond anything that existed in 2008. These 4x4 machines are like go-carts on steroids: extremely loud, nimble and fast. Often referred to as RZRs.

I live in Moab. We get 2.5 million visitors per year. ORVs arrive in droves to use our neighborhood streets as the Gateway to Public Lands. We have hundreds of RZRs roaring up and down our streets everyday, late into the night, over nine months of the year. Grand County is impacted by ORVs more than any other community in the world.

Utah is the only state in the U.S. that restricts a community’s ability to decide where ORVs can drive.

Our streets have turned into a motorcade for joy riding. This situation could happen anywhere in Utah.

Utah citizens have the right to protect their home from abusive noise and excessive toy traffic. Require toys be towed to the trails!

Kaki Hunter

Moab

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