With spring weather, the
construction season begins in earnest. Orange signs, vests and cones
return along Bellingham streets as well as state highways. “Drivers need
to be alert and careful through work zones,” said Ted Carlson, Public
Works Director. “Road workers are doing their part to build and improve
the streets we all depend on, so let's keep them safe by obeying posted
speed limits and putting cell phones away.”
Each year, National Work Zone Awareness Week brings national attention
to motorist and worker safety in work zones. National Work Zone
Awareness Week, now in its second decade, provides an opportunity for
the highway industry to remind its employees and the public about safety
in work zones.
More than four of every five victims in a work zone crash are motorists,
which is why it is particularly important for drivers to remain alert
while driving through work zones. The Federal Highway Administration
(FHWA) has taken steps in the past several years to improve work zone
design, increase training, strengthen law enforcement near work zones
and heighten awareness among drivers, which have helped reduce the
number of work zone fatalities to record lows.
Driver-related factors that affect work zone crashes include speeding,
distractions including cell phones, texting, and radios, inattentive
driving, and aggressive driving. The main type of work zone crash is a
rear-end collision, and adequate following distance is important in
avoiding such crashes.
Bellingham has seen no reportable collisions involving a work zone. To
keep it that way, we remind motorists to slow down in work zones and
keep everyone safe.
