EFFECTIVE SATURDAY, JUNE 7, 2026 — PERMANENT
Zion National Park – All oversize vehicles are prohibited from the Zion–Mt. Carmel Highway between Canyon Junction and the East Entrance. Tunnel escort permits, which currently allow large vehicles through with a ranger, will be eliminated entirely. The change is immediate and permanent — there is no phase-in period.
If you commute daily to St. George or Hurricane, pay attention: starting this Saturday, the familiar shortcut through Zion’s famous tunnel is permanently off-limits for campers, RVs, and any other oversize vehicle. Daily drivers may find themselves stuck behind slow-moving rigs rerouted onto alternate surface roads,.
Does your vehicle qualify?
The restrictions apply to the entire Zion–Mt. Carmel Highway between Canyon Junction and the East Entrance — not just the tunnel itself. Your vehicle must stay within all of the following limits:
Max height: 11 feet 4 inches
Max width: 7 feet 10 inches
Max length: 35 feet 9 inches
Max weight: 50,000 lbs
Combined vehicles (truck + trailer): max 50 ft overall, with no more than 26 ft from hitch to rear axle.
These limits come from safety studies conducted in 1989 and 2019, both validated by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration.
Alternate routes for oversize vehicles
For travelers heading south toward the Arizona Strip, the reroute will push a significant amount of new traffic onto Highway 59. Oversize vehicles that can no longer use the Zion tunnel will be directed south out of Hurricane, through Hildale and Colorado City, and across the Arizona state line — the same two-lane highway that locals use daily.
For those continuing on to Horseshoe Bend, Page, or the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, Highway 59 is now the primary corridor. Expect heavier weekend traffic as RVs, campers, and fifth-wheels make their way south.
Horseshoe Bend / Page, AZ → Highway 59 south through Hildale/Colorado City, then US-89 south toward Page.
North Rim of the Grand Canyon → Highway 59 south to Fredonia, then AZ-67 south into the park.
Bryce Canyon → Highway 59 to US-89 north through Kanab. While Cane Beds Road may appear as a shortcut on GPS routing through Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, it is not recommended for large RVs, motorhomes, or buses.
Still want to visit Zion? → Oversize vehicles can still enter at the South Entrance for the Visitor Center, campgrounds, Zion Lodge, and the scenic drive — just not past Canyon Junction.
“Perhaps the most remarkable part of the work is the engineering, and I take off my hat to the men who conceived this almost impossible project and carried it through to a successful conclusion.” — Utah Governor George H. Dern, at the dedication of the Zion–Mt. Carmel Highway, July 4, 1930
A highway built for a different era
The Zion–Mt. Carmel Highway winds from the South Entrance in Springdale northeast to Mt. Carmel, climbing seven switchbacks up sheer canyon walls before threading through a 1.1-mile tunnel — one of the most breathtaking stretches of roadway in the American Southwest. The problem is that it was engineered for the Model T.
Work began in 1927 when the Nevada Contracting Company began carving the switchbacks near Pine Creek. Crews blasted the tunnel from the cliff by boring outward from the middle, using the famous gallery windows as starting points and as chutes to remove large debris. The project finished in just two years and ten months for just under two million dollars, and the highway was dedicated on July 4, 1930 — completing the “Grand Loop” tour connecting Zion, Bryce Canyon, and the Grand Canyon in a single journey.
The highway is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was designated a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in May 2012. Expanding the road to fit modern vehicles is not feasible — the terrain makes new construction prohibitively expensive and would damage the park’s natural landscape and historic character.
What this means for local commuters
For those who drive the St. George–Hurricane corridor daily, the direct impact may be less about your own vehicle and more about sharing the road with rerouted RV traffic. Slow-moving campers and trailers that previously filtered through the tunnel under ranger escort will now appear on alternate surface roads.
Historical information courtesy Zion National Park. Restriction details from the National Park Service and UDOT Zion Area road restrictions. Photos: Arthur F. Bruhn (ZION 10175), postcard (ZION 1933.2), O.M. Uhl (ZION 10184), Zion National Park Museum Collection
