Work Zone Awareness Week underway

Officials stress safety trips in traffic work zones

Parking closures expected under I-4 due to construction

This week an effort fronted by the Department of Transportation and Florida Highway Patrol shines a spotlight on how to keep it safe while going through unpredictable work zones.

With the large amount of on-going construction here in Central Florida, more and more of our daily driving, takes us through at least one work zone. The first step to keep safe is recognizing that workers in construction zones are in a highly vulnerable position. 

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"We want people to realize is that the construction workers, this is their office out there," said Kim Montes, Public Affairs officer for FHP. "They work out there everyday. They put their lives out there. They have children they have parents they have husbands and wives. You have to give them room to work."

Crews are out on the roads with the sole purpose of doing their job, and improving those roadways for us. Workers at a job site or on a highway are basically as vulnerable as pedestrians.

"We've had workers killed at construction sites from cars not paying attention. We've has workers, close calls," said Montes. "So this work zone safety week is about bringing awareness to the drivers out there who are so absorbed with their own driving they're not taking into consideration that these people work out there for a living and they're not protected."

If you see a service vehicle of any kind with lights on, you are required to get over one lane if it's safe to do so. If you can't you are required by law to decrease your speed to below 20-miles-per-hour of the posted speed limit.

If you are caught speeding in a work zones, fines are doubled and that ticket could cost you as much as $5-600.

So slow down and be safe.


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