The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is introducing new measures to keep its work crews safe on the roads.
The moves comes after WSDOT reported “disturbing increases” in speeding and erratic driving on all roads and in work zones.
Last year, the total number of work zone crashes in Washington increased nearly five per cent – from 1,313 in 2022 to 1,377 in 2023. Of those injured, 95 percent were not workers but drivers, their passengers or pedestrians.
“We’ve seen disturbing increases in speeding and erratic driving on all roads and in our work zones and we are always trying to find new ways to keep crews safe,” said WSDOT Communications Manager, Barbara LaBoe in a blog.
“Our crews – the ones facing these dangers every day – have also asked for extra protection.”
WSDOT is introducing red and white reflective warning stripes on the back of all roadway work vehicles including vehicles used by the Incident Response Team use as well as trucks and snowplows that regularly work on or next to highways.
The red and white stripes are in an upside down “V” design to encourage drivers to be extra alert, slow down and give vehicles space to do their work safely.
In addition, vehicles in work zones and on roads regularly will have lights that alternate between green and yellow, instead of the current yellow flashing lights to help make them more noticeable.
WSDOT said the changes were based on new research by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program and the Transportation Research Board which showed stripes and lights changing between two colors helps people more easily see the vehicles.
