Utah State Route 101

State Route 101 (SR-101) is a 21.811-mile (35.101 km) long state highway located in the U.S. state of Utah. The route serves as a spur route into the Wasatch-Cache National Forest through the cities of Wellsville and Hyrum, with an intermediate intersection with U.S. Route 89 (US-89) and US-91. SR-101 starts at an intersection of Main Street and SR-23 (Center Street). Heading generally eastward, the highway terminates at the Hardware Ranch Wildlife Management Area. SR-101 was first designated in 1931 as a loop off SR-1 from Logan, south to Hyrum, and west to Wellsville.

Route description

Located entirely in Cache County,^[2] SR-101 starts at an intersection of Main Street and SR-23 (Center Street). The highway heads easterly for the first 0.4 mi (0.64 km) before it turns northeasterly, crossing the Little Bear River and intersects US-89/US-91 at a traffic light controlled at-grade interchange. After the interchange, SR-101 turns to the southeast after entering Wellsville city limits. At 400 West, SR-101 turns south for 3 blocks before turning back to the east, and intersecting SR-165.^[3]

After leaving Hyrum, SR-101 dips to the southeast again, entering the Wasatch-Cache National Forest and a canyon formed by the Blacksmith Fork River. The final 13.9 mi (22.4 km) are inside the forest, serving as an access route to several campgrounds, as well as a diversion dam, and electric plant. The route comes to an end at the Hardware Ranch Wildlife Management Area, a working ranch owned and run by the state of Utah.^[3][4][5]

For the year 2007, a daily average of 5,075 cars traveled along SR-101 at the intersection with US-89/US-91. This represents only a slight growth from previous years (in 2006, the average was 5,005; in 2005, 4,620).^[6] Nineteen percent of this traffic was composed of trucks.^[7] The lowest amount of traffic is accounted for on the final stretch of the highway through the Wasatch-Cache National Forest, with an average of 670 cars per day traveling to the Hardware Ranch visitors center. This represents a small increase from previous years, with an average of 635 cars per day in 2006 and 585 cars per day in 2005 traveling to the visitors center.^[6]

History

SR-101 was formed in 1931 as a loop off SR-1 (now US-91) from Logan south to Hyrum and west to Wellsville.^[8] The road from Hyrum east to the Hardware Ranch was added to the state highway system in 1949 as State Route 242,^[9] and that route was extended south to SR-39 in 1965.^[10] The legislature redefined the Hyrum-area routes in 1969, taking SR-101 east from Wellsville to the Hardware Ranch over former SR-242, and returning the extension to SR-39 to local control. The leg of former SR-101 from Hyrum north to Logan became part of a new SR-165 at that time. On March 17, 1972, the roadway connecting the Hardware Ranch Visitors Center to SR-101 was added to the state route system as an addition to SR-101. The connector road was previously designated Collector Road 311.^[11]

Major intersections

References