(Garden City, KS) (westernkansasnews.com)

The Kansas Department of Transportation has several road repair projects currently underway in Southwest Kansas.  It’s been said you make hay while the sun is shining and KDOT workers are also bound to working within a somewhat narrow window of opportunity, having to complete work while the weather is conducive.

Garden City based KDOT spokesperson Kirk Hutchinson reminds motorists to be especially aware in work zones and to slow down.  Hutchinson says it might surprise drivers to learn that 90-percent of the people injured or killed in work zone crashes are the motorists themselves.  He adds that of the 11 people killed in work zone crashes in Kansas last year, all of them were motorists, and the vast majority of the 566 people injured in work zones were motorists as well. 

Work zone safety is not a new concern:  approximately 300 people have died in work zone crashes in Kansas over the past two decades.  There is an average of 4.4 work zone crashes every single day in Kansas.  In addition to avoiding double-fines in work zones, Hutchinson says that by slowing down near KDOT road projects motorists help avoid the risk of injury to themselves and the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to ensure highway safety.