Interchange May 2021
Vol. 49, Iss. 5
WYDOT officials urge motorists to be careful in work zones Drive Safe. Work Safe. Save Lives.
MIke Whisenhunt, with Cheyenne Highway Maintenance, addresses the group gathered at the Work Zone Safety Awareness event on April 27 with (from left) Employee Safety Program Manager Todd DePorter, WHP
By Aimee Inama They could be someone’s father, mother, sister, brother, husband, wife or other loved one. They head out each day to work alongside the road to help make the state’s infrastructure the best it can be. They are construction crews, utility workers, Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers and other vital workers who work in work zones throughout the state. With April 26 through 30 National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week, Wyoming Department of Transportation
Col. Kebin Haller and WYDOT Director Luke Reiner listening on. The event was held at the WYDOT/WHP memorial found in the northwest corner of the main parking lot at the Headquarters campus.
officials held a press conference on April 27 to bring awareness about work zone safety and to urge the traveling public to slow down, obey posted signs and pay attention. State departments of transportation throughout the nation hold the event each spring to bring attention to work safety and mobility issues in work zones. The first national event was held in Springfield, Virginia in April 2000. This year’s event was called, “Drive Safe. Work Safe. Save Lives.” “Our work zones play a vital role in
the preservation and enhancement of our state’s infrastructure,” said K. Luke Reiner, WYDOT director. “WYDOT crews and our and our partners in the road and bridge construction industry work in those areas to ensure our road systems and other key infrastructure and utilities are the best they can be. We need to make sure those workers are safe and get home to their families.” Officials provided state and national statistics on the impacts of crashes in work zones. In Wyoming, an average of Continued on page 3
