Forest Service wary of underage drivers in Idaho

U.S. Forest Service officials are considering altering forest roads in Idaho for safety reasons following a 2009 decision by Idaho lawmakers that opened the roads to drivers younger than 16 operating off-highway vehicles without a state-issued driver's license. "While responsible OHV (off-highway vehicle) recreation is welcome on national forest system roads, safe operation of motor vehicles on national forest roads is compromised because unlicensed and untrained drivers are now sharing roads designed and maintained for passenger cars and commercial truck traffic," said Harv Forsgren, regional forester of the Intermountain Region based in Ogden, Utah. The agency said more than 2,500 miles of roads Forest Service roads in Idaho are "roads of concern" that could be dangerous for unlicensed drivers. The Forest Service is taking public comments through Feb. 22 about roads in the eight national forests in the state...more

Forsgren is just looking for any excuse he can to close more roads. Either that, or he considers himself smarter than the entire State of Idaho when it comes to vehicle safety.