National Work Zone Awareness Week is April 17-21, 2023
Construction season is in full swing, and the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) is renewing its message to motorists to reduce their speeds and drive safely in work zones. This week (April 17-21) is National Work Zone Awareness Week.
RIDOT Director Peter Alviti, Jr. and State Police Colonel Darnell S. Weaver joined officials from the Federal Highway Administration, AAA Northeast, the New England Laborers' Health and Safety Fund, and the Rhode Island Building and Construction Trades today for a press conference at the Department's headquarters in Providence. The message related from each speaker was direct, simple and clear – a new construction season means drivers will encounter dozens of new work zones across the state. When they do, they need to slow down and move over wherever possible to provide a margin of safety for the dedicated workers on our roads.
"This will be a banner year for construction for RIDOT, with 66 projects worth $1.9 billion underway in 2023," Director Alviti said. "Many of our projects have more than one bridge, intersection or section of roadway to be paved, which means there will be literally hundreds of work zones throughout the state this year. We ask that drivers plan their trips and provide extra time for travel with the expectation that they may likely run into one of our work zones. And when they do, slow down, and drive as if their friend of relative is working behind those barrels and cones."
Across the country, fatal crashes in work zones have steadily increased. The most recent statics from the Federal National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2021, reported that 956 people were killed in work zone crashes, up from 863 in 2020. That's equivalent to the capacity of four commercial airplanes. Crashes in work zones injure more than 45,000 people, enough to fill an average baseball stadium. Statistics show that a large majority of those killed in work zone crashes, about 85 percent, are not the workers on the road, but the driver or passengers of the vehicle involved in the crash.
Fortunately, RIDOT has not had any work zone fatalities among its staff or contractors in many years. In Rhode Island there were more than 760 work zone-related crashes last year, slightly higher than the 750 observed in 2021.
In addition to saving lives and reducing serious injuries, reducing work zone crashes helps reduce overall emissions caused by closed lanes and congestion caused by first responders helping those in crashes.
In 2008, Rhode Island passed the "move over" law, which requires drivers to move over a lane when approaching a first responder stopped on the road. In 2014, the law was expanded to include construction and highway maintenance workers. Even if drivers can't change lanes when approaching workers or first responders, the law requires them to slow down and leave as much space as possible between their vehicle and those that are stopped.
"Our Troopers put themselves in harm's way every day to assist motorists and enforce our traffic safety laws. We need our citizens to do their part," said Colonel Darnell S. Weaver, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police and Director of the Department of Public Safety. "Today we are reminding Rhode Islanders to slow down and move over when you see an emergency vehicle or are approaching a construction site."
Safety is RIDOT's highest priority, and all work zones are established with careful attention to safety and in coordination with national standards and best practices. RIDOT routinely inspects all work zones on state roads, including those set up by contractors, bridge inspectors and utility companies. This interaction includes making sure work zones are set up correctly with repeat visits to make sure they remain in compliance.
RIDOT plans the timing and duration of work zones to reduce as much as possible the impact to traffic flow and travel time. The potential impact to traffic is carefully studied during the design process on each project with continual monitoring during projects for any changes that can be made to lessen congestion.
Additionally, all planned work requiring lane or road closures is posted on RIDOT's website at www.ridot.net/traveladvisories and real-time traffic incident information is available on RIDOT's Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/RIDOTNews.