Utah DOT hosts press event on work zone awareness - Public Information and Information Exchange - Brief Article

Public Roads, Sept-Oct, 2003

The FHWA Division Office in Utah, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT), and the Utah Highway Patrol conducted a press conference to stress the importance of driving safely through work zones. Held on a median near a work zone on Interstate 215, the event was organized as part of the national campaign for work zone awareness.

UDOT Executive Director John Njord moved his office into the middle of the work zone to raise awareness of the risks that workers face when drivers fail to stay alert while driving through work zones. Njord listed State statistics on work zone fatalities, and FHWA-Utah Division Administrator Dave Gibbs discussed driver behaviors and identified key strategies for driving safely through work zones--reducing speed and paying attention. A third speaker, Officer Kevin Elmer from the Utah Highway Patrol shared his perspective on work zone accidents and upcoming enforcement activities.

Representatives from four television media, one radio station, and one newspaper covered the event and had the opportunity to ride with Utah State troopers as they ticketed drivers caught speeding through work zones.

For more information on the press event, contact Tom Hudachko at 801-965-4389, thudachko @utah.gov; Paul Mooney at 801-963-0078 ext. 236, paul.mooney@fhwa.dot.gov; or Roland Stanger at 801-963-0078 ext. 254, roland.stanger@fhwa.dot.gov.

Utah Department of Transportation