HANCOCK COUNTY, Ohio (WLIO) - As the warmer weather has arrived, so too has the time when we see more and more road work crews out on the roads.
This week marks National Work Zone Awareness Week, urging motorists to always keep an eye on where they are on the road and to slow down and move over while passing through work zones.
"When we come out here to 75, we're putting our lives on the line - it takes a (police) wheel like we have today, to slow traffic down," said Kyleigh Krupp, Highway Technician 3 for ODOT District 1. "We just want the traveling public to slow down and move over, that's all we ask. We understand that this time of the year construction projects are going on. We can't help that - if you have to leave early to get to work sooner, leave early and get to work."
This week marks National Work Zone Awareness Week, urging motorists to always keep an eye on where they are on the road and to slow down and move over while passing through work zones.
If you are pushing your luck in a work zone, state troopers are on the lookout for violators to not only protect the workers but yourself as well.
"This time of year, it's extremely important to be aware of your surroundings, especially with the construction zones popping up," said Lt. Evan Slates of the Ohio State Highway Patrol Findlay Post. "They can vary from permanent to temporary, so if you travel a normal route daily, it might change based off of what construction zone needs to be set up or torn down, and then just the varying speed limits that could play a role in how fast the traffic's going, how congested it gets, can affect the traffic pattern for the day."
"Follow the speed limit that is posted, keep your eyes on the road, and keep your head on a swivel - that's what we have to do out here every single day," said Krupp. "We keep our head on the swivel the moment we're setting up a message board, the moment we're putting our arrow boards up. It's just as important when you see us here crack sealing when you're on the wand. We have to keep our head on a swivel 100% of the time.
"It's not unusual for us to see people on their cell phones going by; when I'm flagging on the road, I'll have people come up and I see them on the phone, and they may break later than usual, or they stop closer to me than what I would like them to do," Krupp added. "It's kind of shocking, but then again, it's not surprising for us that every day we see something like that."
