Our appeal for the past 26 years has been the same. Each year, during National Work Zone Awareness Week, we’ve asked drivers to pay attention in our work zones. We’ve asked them to drive with caution. We’ve reminded them people’s lives are at stake.
But we haven’t always said whose lives we’re talking about.
It may surprise drivers that about 7 out of 8 people who die in work zone accidents are drivers or their passengers, according to 2022 Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
The Numbers Show Our Progress
That means the people inside vehicles who pass through our work zones face more danger, statistically speaking, than our crew members — this despite the fact our crew members spend hour after hour exposed to passing traffic.
These numbers reflect the progress we’ve made to make working conditions safer for our crews. All the training sessions, awareness campaigns, and innovations have worked together to make our work zones safer than they were a generation ago.
But they also show we have more work to do — both for our crews and for the people who travel through them each day.
Let’s Make it Clear: We Want Everyone to Get Home Safe
When we take our message of safety to the general public during this month’s National Work Zone Awareness Week, let’s make sure we tell drivers we’re working to protect them as well as our work crews from danger.
National Work Zone Awareness Week is April 21-25. This year’s theme, “Respect the Zone so we All Get Home,” reflects this goal: That everyone who enters a work zone exits our work zone safely and makes it back home that day.
How Can We Get Involved in NWZAW?
The North Carolina Department of Transportation hosts this year’s National Work Zone Awareness Week. North Carolina’s DOT will host an official kick-off event on Tuesday, April 22, but there’s no need to travel to the Tarheel state to join this important campaign.
In fact, we encourage all InfraStripe company leaders and employees — as well as family members and friends of anyone who’s connected to our industry — to help us raise awareness.
Here’s how:
On Wednesday, April 23: Go Orange Day
Wear your orange attire on Wednesday, April 23, to show your support for work zone safety. It’s OK to wear as much orange as you own, even if the shades don’t quite match.
Decked out in orange, you’ll be easy to see, and someone may even ask what’s up with all the orange? This is good. It creates a chance to talk about the fact that hundreds of people, most of them drivers or passengers in cars, die in work zones each year.
Be sure to post your orange-clad selfies or group pictures online with the hashtag #Orange4Safety and #NWZAW.
On Thursday, April 24: Social Media Storm
Thursday is our day to flood social media with messages about work zone safety. Use the hashtags #NWZAW and #WorkZoneSafety to join the national conversation between 9 am to 4 pm Eastern Time.
We encourage everyone in our InfraStripe family to share on their company and personal social media pages. The more we post, the more likely someone will pay attention to our messages about work zone safety.
This is another good time to point out this year’s theme, “Respect the Zone so we All Get Home.”
On Friday, April 25: Moment of Silence
We encourage every InfraStripe crew and team member to take a moment of silence on Friday, April 25, to remember those who have died in work zones. This memorial includes photos of some who died in 2024 work zone accidents.
The Week Begins with Training Day Monday, April 21
Before the awareness campaigns gear up each year, National Work Zone Awareness Week begins quietly, with a day of company-sponsored safety training. Companies throughout the nation will stand down from their projects for a few hours, or for the entire day, to talk about safety.
Along with providing valuable training, this special day sets the tone for National Work Zone Awareness Week, showing safety in our work zones starts with us, the infrastructure professionals who set up and operate work zones.
Your Voice Will Amplify Our Important Message
Awareness campaigns like National Work Zone Awareness Week combine all our voices into one voice to share an essential message. Adding your voice and your online presence will make our voice louder by putting our message in front of more people.
Get out your orange clothes, start thinking about your social media posts, and be ready to have a conversation about work zone safety, to tell everyone how to “Respect the Zone so we All Get Home.”