(June 30, 2017) – With the largest construction season in history underway, the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) is urging drivers to stay alert, slow down and travel carefully in roadway work zones. After leading the country in the national observance of Work Zone Awareness Week earlier this spring, work zone crashes continue to occur along Maryland roadways, with three serious crashes occurring last night alone.
“The people who work on roadways are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters and brothers, and they deserve to get home to their families. Their safety is in your hands,” said MDOT SHA Administrator Gregory Slater. “We should also remember that in four out of five work-zone related crashes, it is a driver or vehicle passenger who is injured or killed, so drivers need to stay vigilant in work zones for their safety as well.”
Roadway workers put their lives on the line every day while servicing the thousands of highway construction projects in progress each year. State employees, contractors and subcontractors are widening roadways, constructing interchanges, rehabilitating bridges and performing a variety of maintenance tasks. On average, more than 700 people nationwide lose their lives annually in work zone crashes. Six people lost their lives in Maryland work zone crashes in 2016. Nationally, 130 roadway workers were killed in the line of duty in 2015, the second highest amount in a decade.
Maryland State Police Troopers assist in work zones lane closures, help manage the SafeZones automated speed enforcement program, and enforce speeding and attentive driving laws in and around work zones.
The Maryland “Work Zone Safety Is In Your Hands” campaign reminds drivers that work zone safety is everyone’s business. MDOT SHA employs social media, billboards, television and radio public service announcements and grassroots outreach. These efforts, combined with a summer-long outreach campaign, are intended to protect workers, as well as the drivers and passengers who will travel through the hundreds of work zones in place throughout Maryland this summer.