By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
We are approaching highway construction season.
And, if we ever get to get out again, we need to be on the lookout for construction workers on the highway.
Northwest Missouri Area Engineer Jennifer Sardigal with the Missouri Department of Transportation says though COVID-19 restrictions have eased the amount of traffic on the roadways, they have added to another primary factor in car wrecks. Sardigal says recent reports indicate though there is less traffic, those on the highways are driving faster.
“So, speed is a big concern this year, because of the less traffic, you’re seeing increased speed and you’re seeing a lot of crashes,” Sardigal tells St. Joseph Post.
MoDOT reports there are five main causes for wrecks in construction zones: speed, distracted driving, following too closely, improper lane usage, and failing to yield.
Sardigal says distracted driving has become a growing contributor to construction zone crashes.
“With the increase in technology, you’re just seeing more and more people with cell phones and they’re just causing even more distraction than they were before,” Sardigal says.
Sardigal says speeding is a primary contributor to highway work zone accidents, including fatal ones. Sardigal says some motorists drive so fast, they don’t have time to slow down once they read a warning sign.
“That’s how we have the work zone signs set up, is based upon your speed and how long it takes you to react and stop. That’s how far apart the signs are,” Sardigal says. “So, if you’re traveling faster it takes you longer to slow down and a lot longer to stop if you’re traveling faster.”
Last year, 18 people died in highway work zone crashes in Missouri.
MoDOT Work Zone Statistics 2019
- In 2019, 18 people were killed in work zone crashes in Missouri.
- Between 2015 and 2019, 64 people were killed in work zone crashes in Missouri.
- Between 2015 and 2019, 3,685 people were injured in Missouri work zone crashes.
- Since 2000, 19 MoDOT employees have been killed in the line of duty, 13 of them taking place in work zones.
- The best defense in a work zone crash, or any crash, is a seat belt. In 2019, 64 percent of vehicle occupant fatalities were not wearing a seat belt.
- The top five contributing circumstances for work zone crashes: distracted/inattentive, following too close, improper lane usage, driving too fast for conditions and failing to yield.