Uniform Act Regulating Traffic on Highway – 1931
During the 1920s, the National Conference on Street and Highway Safety prepared a suggestion of uniform motor vehicle control legislation for the various states. This conference consisted of all the national organizations concerned with the problem of uniformity of traffic laws. Assisted by the American Bar Association, this conference produced a program which has served as the solid foundation for the entire legal structure of motor vehicle traffic regulation and control. The United States Secretary of Commerce endorsed the program and recommended its adoption by all of the states. This so-called “uniform code,” consisted of four separate acts: (1) Motor Vehicle Registration, (2) Driver Licensing, (3) Automobile Anti-Theft, and (4) Uniform Traffic Regulations. The 1927 Utah Legislature considered this entire Uniform Code, which was sponsored locally by a committee appointed by Governor Dern, but were unable to give it serious consideration because of the sheer complexity and magnitude of the proposed laws. By 1931, the increase in speed and volume of motor vehicle traffic and multiplying traffic accident problems was sufficient to arouse enough public sentiment to win legislative approval, of the Uniform Traffic Code. It took several remaining legislative sessions to enact the whole four-pronged program. Utah was far from being the last state to adopt the entire program; in fact, some states, such as Montana, had not even created a state highway patrol by this time.