More road construction increasing work zone dangers

More roadwork is being done now that warmer weather is here. When most people go to work they worry about getting their work done correctly. Those who work for the Missouri Department of Transportation worry about getting their work done as well as their safety.

MoDOT worker, Kent Cunningham, was almost hit by a tractor trailer last year while he was working on the road.

“I just put my head down and thought this is going to hurt”, said Cunningham.

MoDOT maintenance supervisor, James Williams said, “Safety comes first. It comes before quality. It comes before quantity.”

Williams said when cars are driving by non-stop they are constantly worried about their safety.

Flaggers are trained to watch the traffic instead of the construction that is going on.

They make sure motorists are aware of what is going on as far as roadwork.

MoDOT works with the Columbia Police Department as well as the Highway Patrol if they need extra assistance in notifying drivers of what kind of construction is going on ahead.

MoDOT said between 2009 and 2013, 53 people were killed and 2,781 were injured in Missouri work zones.

The Missouri Department of Transportation asked that when motorists are driving through a work zone to slow down and pay careful attention to what is going on around them.