Road Construction
Drivers need to be particularly attentive when passing through road construction.
Heavy equipment and hard-hatted workers can be distracting. Changing conditions, such as temporary lane closures, width changes, and crossovers, can also be challenging. Traffic controls and signs may change daily, and flag persons may signal unexpected stops.
As a driver, you can take three safety precautions:
- Slow down, and adjust speed to conditions.
- Change lanes to keep away from equipment and workers.
- Anticipate the unexpected.
Even good drivers who obey driving rules can get into trouble on the road. After a self-employed truck driver was killed in a construction zone accident, his wife and two young sons sued the contractor. A jury found for the driver's widow and her children, who settled with the contractor when lawyers showed its negligence in not posting warning signs to alert drivers to construction hazards.