Orange You Gonna Slow Down in Work Zones This Construction Season?
Posted by GSDispatch Editor in by MoDOT
Work Zone Awareness Week Begins Monday
Winter is now behind us, but the forecast calls for a blizzard of construction activity this season throughout MoDOT’s eight-county Kansas City District and across the region.
This year Kansas Department of Transportation joins MoDOT in urging motorists to slow down, avoid distractions and drive carefully through work zones, which can be dangerous, even deadly, for motorists and workers. MoDOT and KDOT go orange to bring awareness during Work Zone Awareness Week, April 4-8.
The message of “Don’t barrel through work zones,” reminds drivers to give yourself and others the best chance to stay safe. Slow down, pay attention and eliminate distractions. Speed, inattention and tailgating are cited as the cause of most crashes in areas where roadwork is under way.
There are dozens of work zones to travel through this construction season. Some of the major work zones drivers will experience in the in the Kansas City area:
· In Jackson County, interchange projects on I-70 at I-435, I-435 at Front Street, Route 150 and Botts Road; bridge work on I-70 from Downtown to Van Brunt Boulevard, Route 150 widening; and bridge replacements and paving in many areas;
· In Cass County, improvements include resurfacing and improvements to Route J between Route 58 and Route 71;
· In Clay County, improvements include interchange improvements at Route 9 and Briarcliff Parkway;
· In Platte County, improvements include resurfacing and improvements to I-435 between I-29 and Route 169;
· In Henry County, improvements include resurfacing projects on Route 13;
· In Johnson County, improvements include resurfacing westbound lanes and intersection improvements on Route 50;
· In Lafayette County improvements include resurfacing of Route 24 in Lexington and many other rural routes.
· The Safe & Sound Bridge Improvement Program, will improve 800 bridges over the next five years, including more than 70 in the Kansas City District this year.
As drivers travel through the many work zones, MoDOT wants you to rate work zones, as part of the department’s efforts to improve work zones. To fill out a Work Zone Customer Survey and help improve MoDOT work zones, visit www.modot.org/workzones/comments.htm.
Going Orange
To bring awareness to work zone safety , MoDOT and its partners are going orange for the fourth year with Operation Orange, which lights state landmarks orange during the week. In addition to MoDOT buildings statewide, other facilities in the greater Kansas City area that will be lit orange or observe the week in other ways include:
· Belton Water Tower
· Harrisonville City Hall
· Memorial Fountain in front of Grandview City Hall
· Unity Village Tower
· Riverside Municipal Campus buildings
· North Kansas City’s City Hall
· Truman Medical Center
· Higginsville City Hall
· Lee’s Summit Police Station
· A Country Club Plaza fountain
· Hampton Inn in Clinton
· Cass County Sheriff’s Office
· Burns and McDonnell offices
· HNTB Corporation
· Mid-America Regional Council
· Missouri Tourism and Visitor’s offices near Truman Sports Complex
For more information about construction projects statewide, look for work zone locations on MoDOT’s interactive traveler information map at www.modot.org/kansascity or call 888-ASK-MODOT (275-6636).
