Cone Zone season is upon us. Road repair work due to severe winter conditions and the Province’s recent announcements of road safety improvement projects means more work zones and more roadside workers at risk of being injured or killed by a motor vehicle.
Every day tens of thousands of workers work alongside our BC roadways. It’s a dangerous job. Between 2007 and 2016, 15 roadside workers were killed and 229 were injured and missed time from work as a result of being hit by a motor vehicle.
To help keep roadside workers safe, the Work Zone Safety Alliance is launching the 2017 Cone Zone Campaign, an annual road safety awareness initiative to encourage safe driving behaviours around roadside workers.
Safe driving behaviour ensures that roadside workers — such as first responders, road builders, municipal workers, landscapers, flag people, tow truck operators and utility workers— return home safe.
Here’s what these workers need drivers to do:
- Be alert and look for work zone signage, traffic cones or changes in the traffic pattern. Listen to traffic reports and adjust your route to avoid work zones.
- Safely slow down before reaching a Cone Zone and comply with the posted speed limit. If you are using a hands-free device, end your call immediately.
- Respect the roadside as a workplace. Driving unsafely in a Cone Zone puts roadside workers at risk. Orange cones are often the only things separating their work space from your vehicle.
- Always reduce your speed when driving near work vehicles with flashing amber, red and blue lights. If the posted speed limit is greater than 80 km/h, slow to 70km/h. If the posted speed is less than 80 km/h, slow to 40 km/h. In both situations, move over if it’s safe to do so. Drivers failing to adjust their speed — or failing to move over — may receive a $173 violation ticket and three penalty points.
For more information about work zone road safety, visit ConeZoneBC.com