Idle Reduction Laws and Incentives in Utah

The list below contains summaries of all Utah laws and incentives related to idle reduction.

Laws and Regulations

Idle Reduction Requirement

Idling of any unattended vehicle is prohibited in Utah. Violators are subject to a penalty of up to $750 and/or up to 90 days imprisonment. Drivers on state roads are also encouraged to avoid excessive idling, which, is defined as more than 10 to 15 seconds for passenger vehicles. Specifically, drivers are encouraged to turn off engines when loading or unloading, delivering, and picking up or dropping off passengers. Drivers of gasoline powered passenger vehicles are encouraged to limit engine warm-up time to 30 seconds and drivers of diesel powered passenger vehicles, buses, and trucks are encouraged to limit engine warm-up to the time the vehicle manufacturer recommends, which is generally less than five minutes. Businesses, schools, airport authorities, and governmental entities are encouraged to post signs to discourage customer idling.

(Reference Utah Code 41-6a-202, 41-6a-1401, 41-6a-1403, 76-3-204, and 76-3-301)

Local Vehicle Idling Regulations

A local highway authority may not enact an ordinance that prohibits or restricts an owner or operator of a vehicle from idling the vehicle’s engine, unless the ordinance is primarily educational, specifies that a person must be issued at least three warnings before a fine is imposed, has the same fine structure as a parking violation, provides for the safety of law enforcement personnel enforcing the ordinance, and specifies that the ordinance may be enforced on public property or private property that is open to the general public. Exceptions apply.

(Reference Utah Code 41-6a-208)

School Bus Idle Reduction Regulations

School bus drivers must turn off bus engines as soon as possible at loading and unloading areas and only restart the engine when it is time to depart. Exceptions include extreme weather conditions and idling in traffic. At bus depots, drivers are required to limit engine warm-up to the time recommended by the engine manufacturer. All school bus drivers in the state receive a minimum of 30 minutes of idling reduction instruction during their annual service training. In addition, school districts must revise bus schedules to maximize efficiency and assign the cleanest buses to the longest routes. For more information, see the Utah State Board of Education Pupil Transportation website and the Utah School Bus Idling Standards.

(Reference Utah Code 41-6a-1308 and Utah Administrative Code 277-601-1 through 277-601-3)

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