NDDOT reminds drivers to slow down and stay alert

BISMARCK, N.D. (KXNET) — The North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT) held a construction site safety press conference on Thursday, May 23, reminding people to stay alert and drive safely around highway construction sites.

With the start of the road construction season and increasing tourist traffic, the safety of highway workers is at risk from inattentive and speeding drivers.

According to NDDOT, there were 290 car accidents in construction sites last year.

Both Dave Hess and the man who crashed his snow plow while he and a crew were clearing snow on I-94 east of Bismarck Avenue are lucky to be alive.

Hess still remembers the day in November 2022 when a driver drove straight toward his snow plow without stopping. “He came closer and closer and closer until I finally thought he was going to hit me,” Hess recalls.

He tried to alert the other members of his crew, who were driving their own trucks ahead of him, to the approaching vehicle. “As soon as I said that over the radio, the guy drove right into the back of me, turned around, got in front of my truck and then crashed back into the median,” Hess explained.

Hess has experienced first-hand what many highway workers have to go through in doing their job to keep our roads safe.

According to SGT Jenna Clawson Huibregtse, spokesperson for the North Dakota Highway Patrol, speed is a contributing factor in many accidents at construction zones. Drivers can avoid dangerous situations by driving slower and paying attention.

“There are many signs warning people before they enter the construction zone. Just because the sign says you can drive 40 miles per hour through the construction zone, the safer speed is often even lower,” Huibregtse said.

She adds that while slowing down in construction zones “may add one to four minutes to travel time, overall it makes a significant difference to people’s safety.”

Huibregtse also warns drivers to pay close attention to their surroundings and concentrate on driving when they are behind the wheel.

Matt Linneman, deputy chief engineering officer for NDDOT, says distracted driving is one of the biggest problems his department faces when people drive through highway construction zones.

Linneman stressed: “We really need to make sure people pay attention and put their phones away. Our team members and partners are all out in these work zones trying to keep the roads clear for everyone.”

Hess wants drivers to take this advice to heart because, in his opinion, everyone’s life could depend on it, including that of his colleagues on the highway.

“We want them to get home safely to their families. We want to get home safely to our families. We have a job to do. We have to get those roads open or maintain them for everyone so they can travel safely through North Dakota.”

Dave Hess

To help drivers stay better informed about current road construction projects, NDDOT offers a mobile travel information app that you can download directly to your phone.

The app is called ND Roads and offers a digital map that shows you the locations of current construction sites in real time.