Utah State Route 61

File:Lewiston Center looking East 2 - UT-61.JPG

At the intersection of SR-23 (4800 West) and 13400 North in the center of Cornish, SR-61 departs east on 13400 North due east, crossing over a single track belonging to the Union Pacific Railroad (UP). Exiting Cornish, the highway crosses the Bear River and continues east through rural Cache County. Just shy of the western city limits of Lewiston, the highway intersects SR-200 (800 West), a connector road to Preston, Idaho.{{google maps|url=https://www.google.com/maps/preview#!data=!1m4!1m3!1d39667!2d-111.8552354!3d41.9843519!4m29!3m20!1m4!3m2!3d41.9759803!4d-111.8128492!6e2!1m4!3m2!3d41.9754025!4d-111.9541384!6e2!2e0!3m8!1m3!1d4959!2d-111.8207027!3d41.977432!3m2!1i1366!2i642!4f13.1!5m2!13m1!1e1!7m4!11m3!1m1!1e1!2b1&fid=0|access-date=December 22, 2013}} From the western terminus to SR-200, the shoulder is up to {{convert|4|ft|m|spell=in}} wide, suitable for bicycling, however the remainder of the route has much narrower shoulders, between less than or equal to {{convert|1+9/10|ft|m|spell=in}} wide.{{cite map|publisher=Utah Department of Transportation|title=Utah Bicycle Suitability Map|url=http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=200404201454221|access-date=December 23, 2013|scale=Scale not given|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022165912/http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=200404201454221|archive-date=October 22, 2013|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}

The highway's name changes from 13400 South to Center Street through Lewiston. Passing the Lewiston Cemetery, SR-61 crosses over the Cub River and a second single track belonging to UP, and then a third UP single track just before the highway's eastern terminus at US-91 north of Richmond. All of the rail lines that SR-61 crosses originally belonged to the Oregon Short Line Railway. Aside from the segment through Lewiston, the highway is surrounded by farmland for its entire journey across northern Utah.

Every year, UDOT conducts a series of surveys on its highways in the state to measure traffic volume. This is expressed in terms of average annual daily traffic (AADT), a measure of traffic volume for any average day of the year. In 2012, UDOT calculated that as few as 735 vehicles used the highway on an average day at its western terminus in Cornish, and as many as 2,180 vehicles used the highway at its junction with SR-200.{{cite report|url=http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=7502314351643878|title=Traffic on Utah Highways|page=11|year=2012|access-date=December 22, 2013|publisher=Utah Department of Transportation|format=PDF|last=Staff|archive-date=September 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150902170402/http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=7502314351643878|url-status=dead}} Thirty-five percent of this was truck traffic.{{cite report|url=http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=11139106792388678|title=Truck Traffic on Utah Highways|page=11|year=2012|access-date=December 22, 2013|publisher=Utah Department of Transportation|format=PDF|last=Staff|archive-date=September 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150902170415/http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=11139106792388678|url-status=dead}}

A roadway linking Cornish to the east has existed since at least 1914.{{cite map|publisher=United States Geological Survey|title=Utah-Idaho: Logan Quadrangle|url=http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/topo/utah/txu-pclmaps-topo-ut-logan-1914.jpg|access-date=December 23, 2013|year=1914|scale=1:250,000|cartography=USGS}} The roadway that serves as the eastern terminus was numbered SR-1 by 1927,{{cite map|publisher=National Map Company|title=Official Paved Road and Commercial Survey of the United States|url=http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~256889~5520622:Sectional-paved-road-map--Copyright?sort=Pub_Date%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No|access-date=December 22, 2013|edition=1262|year=1927|scale=Scale not given|page=27|oclc=767737945}} and the highway officially was designated SR-61 in 1931.{{cite UTSR law|year=1931|quote=(61) From route 1 at Webster Spur westerly via Lewiston and Cornish and northerly to Idaho State line.}}{{cite map|publisher=Texaco|title=Texaco Road Map Idaho, Montana, Wyoming|url=http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~23818~920003:Texaco-road-map-Idaho,-Montana,-Wyo|year=1937|cartography=Rand McNally|scale=1:1,774,080|section=K-6|access-date=December 22, 2013}} The {{convert|16.2|m|ft|disp=flip|adj=mid|-long}} bridge that carries SR-61 over the Cub River today was constructed in 1952,{{NBI|structurenumber=0D 548|datakey=655413|linkwork=yes|linkpub=yes|access-date=December 22, 2013}} while the {{convert|55.5|m|ft|disp=flip|adj=mid|-long}} bridge over the Bear River was built in 1961.{{NBI|structurenumber=0F 25|datakey=655788|linkwork=no|linkpub=no|access-date=December 22, 2013}} The original river crossings were slightly further south than their current locations. Until 1953, SR-61 continued north to the Idaho border. This section was replaced by SR-23 in 1953.

{{jcttop|county=Cache|state=UT|length_ref=|location_ref={{cite map|publisher=Utah Department of Transportation|map=Cache County|map-url=http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=41959318186143430|access-date=December 22, 2013|year=2005|scale=1:22,440|url=http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/f?p=100:pg:0::::V,T:,344|title=General Highway Map|page=2|archive-date=January 12, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160112193800/http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/f?p=100:pg:0::::V,T:,344|url-status=dead}}}}

{{UTint

| location=Cornish

| mile=0.000

| road={{jct|state=UT|SR|23|name1=4800 West|city1=Ogden|location2=Pocatello}}

| notes=Western terminus}}

{{UTint

|location=Lewiston

|lspan=2

| mile=4.025

| road={{jct|state=UT|SR|200|dir1=north|name1=800 West|location1=Preston}}

| notes=Southern terminus of SR-200}}

{{UTint

| mile=7.287

| road={{jct|state=UT|US|91|name1=950 East|city1=Logan|location2=Franklin}}

| notes=Eastern terminus}}

{{jctbtm}}

{{portal|Utah}}

• List of state highways in Utah

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State Route 61