I saw a news flash recently from the Missouri Department of Transportation that this week is Work Zone Awareness Week. According to their website, “National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) is an annual spring campaign held at the start of construction season to encourage safe driving through highway work zones.”
In making their announcement, MoDOT gave a sobering statistic: “In 2021, 17 people died in work zones on Missouri roadways. Since 2000, 34 MoDOT employees have been killed in the line of duty, 16 of them taking place in work zones.”
As a personal injury lawyer with over 18 years of experience, I’ve handled many car crash cases in a work zone. Here are a few things to take into account if you’ve been hurt by a car in a work zone.
- Get pictures of the signage and cones.
Even better, have a passenger film the area of the work zone while driving through. It is important to see what drivers saw when going through the work zone. This can help show the at-fault driver should have known to be careful and is liable for the crash. It also shows what rules the drivers were expected to follow while driving through the work zone.
- Pull the permits for the construction zone.
Permits often show the placement of signs and cones. They also show when the construction zone was established. These two facts can help show the at-fault driver knew or should have known about the work zone, especially if the driver testifies they’ve driven through the road with the work zone before. This can not only help show the driver was negligent, but can also make them liable for punitive damages if they testify they knew the dangers of breaking work zone driving rules.
- Look for signs of distraction.
As with any type of crash case, the most common cause is driver inattention. With this in mind, always look for signs of distraction when investigating a work zone crash case. Mobile phone records should be obtained to rule out phone distraction. Also look for evidence of fatigue, drug use, or other things that affect one’s ability to focus. Finding evidence of distraction greatly improves your case.
If you or a loved one have been injured in a work zone crash and have questions, please feel free to contact Meyerkord, Russell & Hergott at (816) 867-8611. We have many years of experience handling these types of cases and can answer your questions.
Please also remember to pay extra attention and care when driving through a work zone.