Clark County Public Works is urging drivers to slow down, pay attention and be patient in road work zones as warmer weather brings more travel and the start of the busy summer construction season.
The county issued the reminder in a social media post last week, noting that summer months see the highest number of crashes resulting in serious injuries or deaths.
June, July and August are Washington’s deadliest consecutive 90 days for traffic fatalities, according to the county. Since 2018, more than 1,500 people have died in collisions during the summer months, with many more injured.
The timing is especially concerning for local road workers because summer also brings road construction, maintenance and repair work. Much of that work must be completed during longer stretches of warm, dry weather, placing workers on or near roads at the same time more drivers are traveling.
Clark County ranks fourth among Washington counties for the most work zone collisions, with about 80 incidents recorded each year. The leading causes include distracted driving, speeding and actions by frustrated drivers, according to the county.
“It’s not a matter of ‘if’ drivers will encounter work zones this summer, but when and where,” Clark County Public Works stated.
The county encouraged drivers to allow extra time to reach their destinations, check traffic conditions before leaving and focus only on driving while behind the wheel.
Posted speed limits are based on the maximum safe speed for a road, taking into account intersections, curves, traffic volumes, sight distance, inclines and other conditions. Driving faster than the posted speed increases the risk of a crash, especially in work zones where equipment, workers, lane shifts and sudden stops may be present.
County officials also warned against distracted driving. At 35 mph, a driver who looks at a text message for six seconds can travel about the length of a football field without watching the road. In a work zone, even drifting a few inches out of a lane can put a worker at serious risk.
Public Works also encouraged drivers to check routes before leaving. Popular mapping applications can show real-time slowdowns and delays, and Clark County Public Works submits road construction information to Google Maps, Apple Maps and Waze. However, not all work zones appear in mapping apps, including moving work zones or emergency responses to crashes, debris or other hazards.
Drivers should expect delays, leave early or take an alternate route when possible, the county said.
“Our workers are out there not to make you late; they’re out there to fix the road issues you’ve reported and to make the drive better for you,” Clark County Public Works stated. “Be kind to workers.”
Clark County Public Works, the Washington state Department of Transportation, Vancouver Public Works, Washington State Patrol and the Clark County Sheriff’s Office came together to remind drivers that work zone safety is everyone’s responsibility during on June 10 at the Clark County Public Works 78th Street Operations Center.
Work zone collisions resulting in serious injury and even death occur locally. In the past year, injury incidents in Clark County work zones have been caused by drivers who were distracted, speeding or feeling angry and impatient about delays to their commute.
Sarah Bartol, a construction inspector with Clark County Public Works, told of a work zone incident that occurred last summer on Northwest 99th Street.
“A young worker on the crew was moving a saw cutting machine to the other side of the road. He was standing on the sidewalk with the machine in the bike lane when a minivan with a driver on their cellphone struck the worker head-on, pinning him to the machine and tossing him down the road more than 20 feet… And standing there looking at the aftermath, it really hit me that this could have easily been his life lost.
“Most of us in this industry have experienced close calls. We’ve seen distracted drivers, speeding through work zones, or people ignoring traffic control completely. And those moments are scary, because behind every hard hat and safety vest is a real person just trying to do their job and make it home to their family.”
Clark County Public Works and WSDOT host webpages with additional information about driving safely in work zones at wsdot.wa.gov/about/seasonal-events-programs/give-em-brake and clark.wa.gov/public-works/drive-safely-work-zones.
