NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Tim Potter with the Kansas Department of Transportation says that, as important as it is to make sure that KDOT employees can work safely, when you slow down in a work zone, you're really, most likely helping yourself.
"Eighty five to ninety percent of the time, the people that are injured in work zone crashes are motorists themselves," Potter said. "It's more common for motorists to be hurt than it is KDOT workers or construction workers. However, we try to raise awareness of work zone safety for everyone's benefit."
Work zones can be dangerous to drivers even when no one is there, if the barriers put up create a narrowing in the road or a stop in the middle of work due to weather or other factors causes an irregular road surface.
"Under state law, when you go into a work zone, a marked work zone, we're going to have lower posted speed limits," Potter said. "If you are caught speeding in there, you could face double the normal fine. Whether there are workers there in the work zone or not, the lower speed limit still applies. The work zone begins with the Road Work Ahead sign and it ends with the End Road Work sign."
The key is to expect those additional traffic measures to be there for some time, if you see them on your regular commute.
"Once we create those work zones and those narrower lanes, it's not easy to just take them down and then put them back up from hour to hour or day to day," Potter said. "Once we put them up, we try to keep those up until the project is completed."
Go Orange Day in Kansas is Wednesday, April 19, where you can wear orange to show support for highway workers and their efforts.
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