St. Paul – Minnesota Department of Transportation Commissioner Tom Sorel is asking all Minnesota motorists to approach work zones with care and keep safety uppermost in mind when driving following a work zone crash on I-94 near Hwy 280 in St. Paul in which workers were injured when an automobile ran into a construction vehicle on the side of the road.
“There are thousands of workers on our state and local roadways every day who are working to improve our transportation system,” Sorel said. “They deserve to be safe. They deserve to be able to go home to their families after their shift.” He added that there were more than 1,900 work zone crashes in 2010.
Minnesota has been working very hard on reducing crashes on deaths on roadways through its work in the Toward Zero Deaths program. Sorel notes that of the components of that program—engineering, education, enforcement and emergency services—education is critical because it brings motorists into the safety mix.
“We can engineer safe roads, enforce traffic laws and respond to crashes with emergency services as good as any state in the nation,” Sorel said. “But we cannot do it without motorist cooperation. One crash in a work zone is one too many.”
