Folks, I am not nearly brave enough to even think about working this sort of job – I’d be visiting the portable John to change my clothes several times a day – without the crazy, careless and discourteous drivers we see every day. Nope, there is simply not enough money for me to consider this job. I have a lot of respect for those workers who do this for a living. Living in the Washington, DC metro area, we are accustomed to road work in many places all year long. Currently there are at least three major road construction projects ongoing and a new metro-rail line out to Dulles International Airport.
Each year in April, National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) is held to bring national attention to motorist and worker safety and mobility issues in work zones. Beginning in late 1999, FHWA has worked with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and the American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA) to coordinate and sponsor the event. Since then other transportation partners have joined the effort to support NWZAW. In addition to a National event conducted each year, many States host their own NWZAW events.
Sometimes a small idea really catches on. National Work Zone Awareness Week, now in its 11th year, is proof: What began as a small event in a single Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) district has grown into a national program that involves virtually every State in the Union.
Statistics suggest the effort is having a positive effect on safety. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System, the number of work zone fatalities has decreased in the United States every year since 2002. Data show that crashes in work zones caused 720 fatalities in 2008. That figure represents a 39 percent decrease from 2002, when 1,186 work zone fatalities occurred.
Please remember:
2011 National Work Zone Awareness Week, April 4-8 2011 – Safer Driving. Safer Work Zones. For Everyone.
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