Work Zone Awareness campaign encourages safe driving through work zones

INDIANAPOLIS -- Governor Eric Holcomb recently proclaimed April 3-7 as Work Zone Awareness Week.

With the 2017 construction season shaping up to be a large one, the week is intended to mark the ceremonial start and draw awareness to both motorist and worker safety in the work zone.

The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) is coordinating with the Indiana State Police, Indiana Department of Labor, other state agencies and industry groups like the American Traffic Safety Services Association, Indiana Constructors and the Indiana Road Construction Awareness Corp. to hold events and increase awareness about work zone safety.

The 2017 Work Zone Awareness theme is “Work Zone Safety is in Your Hands.”

Since 2014, an average of at least 12 people have been killed each year in INDOT roadway work zone crashes, with 80 percent of those killed being motorists or their passengers.

This year INDOT will oversee more than 300 construction contracts worth more than $1 billion in capital investment. The agency will resurface 3,047 lane miles of pavement; work on 41 capital projects aimed at improving traffic mobility and safety and modernize or improve dozens of interchanges and intersections across the state. INDOT and its contractors will also rehabilitate or construct 486 bridges and small structures.

INDOT will use work zone signage, traffic alerts, social media and project communication across the state to keep Hoosiers up-to-date on this year’s construction projects. Drivers can also use an interactive online map to see which projects are under construction across the state (http://www.in.gov/indot/div/construction).

Current work zones and real-time traffic conditions are also available on INDOT’s TrafficWise map (http://pws.trafficwise.org/pws).

INDOT urges drivers to follow these safety tips to keep work zones safe:

-- Stay alert! Look for reduced speed limits, narrow driving lanes and highway workers.

-- Pay attention. Work zone signs will tell drivers exactly what to expect ahead.

-- Merge Early. If drivers merge as soon as they see signs, traffic will flow much more smoothly.

-- Slow down! Don’t speed, there could be slowed or stopped vehicles in the construction zone.

-- Keep your distance. Maintain a safe distance on all sides of the vehicles.

-- Minimize distractions. The three Cs – cell phones, CDs, and coffee – are the primary cause of driver inattention.

-- Plan ahead. Expect delays during construction season and allow extra travel time, or select an alternate route.