Minnesota Launches Work Zone Program To Reduce Incidents

In an effort to reduce the number of road construction injuries and fatalities, Minnesota officials have launched a safety program to raise public awareness.

Road work zones are often complex and confusing for motorists, consisting of barrels, cones, lane changes and more. When drivers passing through these work zones are distracted -- whether it's from listening to the radio, talking on the phone, texting or otherwise -- it places the lives of construction crew members in jeopardy. It only takes a split-second distraction to veer off course and into the direction of a worker.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were 130 road construction crew member fatalities in 2012 -- up from 122 fatalities in 2011. Texas remains at the top of the list for the most road worker fatalities, with 130 deaths from 2003 to 2012.

Minnesota's new plant to reduce the number of road worker incidents is part of the Toward Zero Deaths (TZD) campaign -- a collaborative program by the Public Health and Transportation and Public Safety to promote safe driving. Minnesota launched TZD over a decade ago, and officials believe it has since reduced the number of road worker fatalities by half. In 2003, there were 655 reported road worker fatalities, whereas 387 were reported in 2013.

So, how does Minnesota hope to lower the rate of road worker fatalities even further? The state's new program (which is part of the TZD campaign) will feature a variety of strategically placed signs, banners and billboards saying, "Orange cones, no phones," advising motorists to hang up their cellphones and pay attention when driving through work zones.

In addition, Minnesota officials will also purchase radio advertisements to catch the general public's attention, because let's face it, not everyone pays attentions to the countless number of signs and billboards scattered along the highways.

"Drivers face many distractions under the best of conditions, and driving through construction work zones only increases these distractions. We hope this campaign helps raise awareness and makes people think twice before picking up their phone in a work zone," said Kristine Hernandez, statewide TZD coordinator.

Whether you live in Minnesota or not, you should remain alert when driving through work zones. Most states have laws in place which allow for higher speeding fines when driving through work zones. Some motorists view these as nothing more than another avenue of revenue for the city, but in reality they are used to reduce incidents involving road construction crew members.