TEXAS, USA — The Texas Department of Transportation launched its statewide "Be Safe, Drive Smart" work zone safety campaign on Monday and it will continue to run until Friday, in honor of National Work Zone Awareness Week.
"Despite a 16% decrease in traffic fatalities in Texas work zones last year, 205 people still lost their lives and another 788 people were seriously injured in work zone traffic crashes," TxDOT officials said. "While a decline in fatalities is encouraging to see, even one life lost is too many."
Of those killed, TxDOT reports 175 were motorists or their passengers, 27 were pedestrians, 2 were bicyclists and 1 was a roadside worker.
This comes after West volunteer firefighter Eddie Hykel died on the job Tuesday, March 28, when a semi-truck crashed into a vehicle fire he responded to on 1-35. The incident lead to a community outcry and a push to strengthen "slow down or move over" laws.
"Texas has more than 3,300 active work zones and driving conditions in them can be challenging," TxDOT said. "TxDOT road crews are often working only a few feet away from fast-moving vehicles in these areas. Speeding, driver inattention and unsafe lane changes are the top three factors in work zone crashes."
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