MoDOT Planning Biggest Construction Season Ever

Construction Officially Kicked off in Early March

The 2006 road construction season will be the biggest ever as the Missouri Department of Transportation works around the clock to make roads smoother and safer. April 3-9 is National Work Zone Awareness Week and traditionally the start of the construction season.  However, this year, several projects started early in March so some construction could be finished ahead of the Memorial Day weekend.

“We’re doing everything we can to let motorists know ahead of time where they’ll encounter construction zones and how they can get through them safely with minimum frustration or avoid them entirely,” said Don Hillis, director of System Management. “While these improvements will increase delays for now, safer roads and a smoother driving surface will be a long-term benefit.”

In his State of the State Address, Gov. Matt Blunt challenged MoDOT to finish its Smooth Roads Initiative projects by the end of 2006, and MoDOT is working to deliver. The initiative will bring the most heavily traveled 2,200 miles of Missouri highways up to good condition. All these improvements mean that MoDOT will have thousands of work zones statewide this year, many of them on major interstates and highways. 

Twenty-seven projects are scheduled on Interstate 44 in 2006, four of which are considered major and all of which will require some lane closures.  Seventeen projects are scheduled on Interstate 70, most of which will involve resurfacing or installing median guard cable. 

More work zones mean more delays, frustrations and opportunities for drivers to be distracted, making work zones dangerous places, Hillis said. MoDOT is working to minimize drivers’ frustrations by making special efforts to let motorists know what’s happening on their roads through billboards and radio advertisements.  In addition, a statewide construction map and corridor construction maps for I-44 and I-70 are being distributed statewide and can also be found on MoDOT’s Web site at http://www.modot.org/workzones/WorkZoneAdvisory.htm

“We’re working day and night to make roads smoother and safer,” Hillis said. “We ask that motorists be patient with us as we improve their roads, and remember to always buckle up and Drive Smart.”

According to Missouri statistics, most work zone crashes are caused by inattention, excessive speed and following too closely. Motorists are the ones most likely to be killed or injured in a work-zone crash – though far too many MoDOT employees and contractors have lost their lives.

Work-zone fatalities and injuries were dramatically down in 2005 with only 15 fatalities and 940 motorists injured in work zone crashes. That is a decline from 2004 when 28 motorists died and 1,167 were injured in work zone crashes. Since 2000, 214 MoDOT employees have been injured and four MoDOT workers have died in work zone crashes.

“In the grand scheme of things, a few minutes of inconvenience means years of smoother, safer driving,” Hillis said.  “We’re doing our part to keep you moving through Missouri, but the difference is you. Drive Smart and Arrive Alive.”

For more information about construction projects and work zones statewide, visit http://www.modot.org/workzones/WorkZoneAdvisory.htm or call 888-ASK-MODOT (275-6636).

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