Officials with the DOT along with the West Virginia State Police met with media Tuesday in
“We just can’t stress enough how avoidable these accidents are in work zones if people just pay attention,” said DOT Director of Communications Brent Walker. “Turn off the cell phone and just drive.”
The extra work zone safety push comes just weeks before the act of using a hand held cell phone while driving becomes a primary offense and about a week after the first work zone fatalities took place on I-81 near Martinsburg.
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These two fatalities were not workers, but rather motorists driving through the work zone . Something DOT Safety Engineer Donna Hardy said happens more often than you think.
“Eighty percent of all fatalities in our work zones will be the motorists,” she said. “It is not our workers.”
As part of the campaign, the DOT will continue to partner with local law enforcement and with the State Police in an effort to get the message across to motorists.
State Police Sgt. Michael Baylous said thanks to extra government grant funding, law enforcement presence will be heightened in work zones across the state.
“When you see these yellow vests, the next thing you might see if you are speeding will be the blue lights and we all know what yellow and blue make,” said Baylous. “Yellow and blue make green and what that green translates into is you are going to paying some fines and some court costs.”
Baylous stresses that this is not about bringing in more money for the State Police because they don’t see any money from the fines, but rather it’s about keeping work zone workers and motorists safe.
In addition to the added law enforcement presence, the DOT will be putting out work zone safety advertisements for the multiple media outlets as a way to inform the public about being safe in work zones.
