State troopers and officials with the New York Department of Transportation are asking you to slow it down — especially when traveling through work zones.
Jim McGee, general manager with A.L. Blades, says that he sees driver whipping through these zones too quickly all the time. And he says he’s seen some pretty bad accidents because of it. According to The LEADER, there was a distracted driver who was heading down interstate 86 who ended up slamming into a number of cars that were backed up in a work zone. There were several motorists injured in that incident.
Our New York City construction accident lawyers understand that it’s not just motorists who are in danger in these areas — workers who are at risk, too. McGee says many of the men and women that he works with have been hit by passing vehicles throughout their time working roadside.
“You stand next to a car flying past you at 60 or 70 miles an hour,” said McGee. “It’s frightening. Those orange cones don’t offer much protection.”
As we head toward the summer highway construction season, officials with the state’s DOT and state police officers are making an appeal to the public for common sense and courtesy in work zones.
In the summer of 2011, there were close to 500 traffic accidents that happened in work zones operated by contractors and more than 50 additional accidents that happened in roadside maintenance areas. In these accidents, there were close to 20 fatalities and 150 injuries.
A lot of these accidents are caused by what seem like no-brainers. One of the main causes for these accidents was driver speed.
When driving through roadside work zones, driver should slow down, pay attention to and obey warning signs that are posted, merge into the necessary lanes as soon as possible, avoid tailgating, put away the distractions and pay attention. We also need to be on the lookout for flaggers. These workers are here to help to get traffic to flow as smoothly and as quickly as possible and they need to be obeyed.
Drivers are reminded that if you’re busted breaking a law or driving aggressively in our state’s work zones, then you’re going to be slapped with a fine that’s double the normal amount. it’s the law. If you get more than one speeding ticket at any time through a work zone then you run the risk of getting your driver’s license suspended. Both of these laws were passed as a part of the Work Zone Safety Act of 2005.
Lastly, we’d like to talk to you about the state’s “Move Over Law.” This law requires you to slow of down and to move over a lane when you’re passing the vehicles of police officers or emergency crews stopped on the side of the road. This law also covers Transportation vehicles, vehicles with flashing emergency lights as well as tow trucks.
Make these changes in your driving habits not only to help to keep our roadside workers safe, but to help to preserve your safety as well.
The Law Offices of Nicholas Rose, PLLC offers free consultations to those who have been injured in a car accident. Call 1-877-313-7673.
More Blog Entries:
Distracted Driving Warnings Have Little Impact on Curbing Behavior, New York Injury Lawyer Blog, April 22, 2013
Neighborhood Slow Zones Aim to Reduce Crash Frequency & Severity, New York Injury Lawyer Blog, April 16, 2013
