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July law of the month

Pay attention in work zones or pay double fines

July will be another busy month for road construction in all parts of the state, on local streets, county highways and major freeways.

With so many roads currently under construction, motorists now face the challenge of safely maneuvering in and out of work zones while maintaining a safe distance from construction workers and heavy machinery.

"Driving through a work zone requires a lot of patience. Work zones are dangerous under the best of circumstances, but your reaction time and margin for error are reduced significantly if you speed, tailgate or don't pay attention to rapidly changing traffic situations," Wisconsin State Patrol Superintendent David Collins says. "In work zones, workers and equipment often are operating within a few feet of traffic. In addition, work zones frequently have narrow lanes, different merge lanes, and rough or uneven pavement. Rear-end collisions are the most frequent type of crash in a work zone. You must give yourself room. Although construction workers are at a great risk of being hit, about three out of four people killed in work zone crashes are drivers and their passengers."

In order to prevent crashes from occurring and to save lives, fines for traffic violations in work zones are double the usual amounts when workers are present. Just because you do not see someone, it does not mean that they are not there. Even when workers are not present, posted work zone speed limits are still enforced.

"The total costs for speeding in excess of the posted limit in a work zone range from $198 for 1 to 10 mph over the limit all the way up to $879 for 45 mph or more over the limit. You also could have between three and six demerit points added to your driving record," Superintendent Collins says. "State Patrol officers are specifically assigned to many work zones, and they will strictly enforce posted speed limits and other traffic laws. We are trying to protect both workers and motorists in work zones."

Previous "Laws of the Month"

Questions about the content of this page:
Steve L. Olson, steven.olson@dot..wi.gov 
Last modified: July 1, 2009