It is frustrating for Associated General Contractors of America’s (AGC) Brian Turmail when he hears statistics such as:
- Between 2013 and 2023, work zone fatalities in the U.S. increased 50%
- In 2023, more than 898 fatalities and 40,170 injuries occurred in U.S. work zones
- 54 workers/pedestrians are killed on-average each year from being struck by vehicles in work zones
- Nearly half (47%) of contractors believe there is a “greater risk now” for work zone crashes compared to a year ago
“We’ve had more attention on this issue in the last decade than I think we’ve seen forever, and we’re still seeing the same kind of numbers that we saw when we first started doing this survey,” Turmail said.
Since 2015, AGC has conducted a national survey of highway construction firms regarding work zone crashes. Results of the 2025 Work Zone Awareness Survey, which was conducted by AGC and construction software company Heavy Construction Systems Specialists (HCSS) were released in May. HCSS is a Texas-based company that sponsored the 2025 OCA Estimating Competition.
“One of the reasons we do this survey and really work so hard to promote it is that it is a reminder that it is incredibly dangerous for people working in construction work zones,” said Turmail, who has served as AGC’s Vice President of Public Affairs since 2008.
How dangerous were work zones in 2024?
According to the more than 600 contractors taking part in the 2025 AGC/HCSS Work Zone Awareness Survey, 60% reported at least one work zone crash involving a moving vehicle occurred in the past year. Nearly one-third (32%) of contractors responding to the survey reported five or more motor vehicle crashes in their work zones in the last 12 months. (Editor’s note: Ohio’s 2025 construction season isn’t seeing any letup in the dangers of working in work zones. ODOT reported in late June that its crews have been hit 72 times thus far this year by vehicles. In 2024, ODOT crews were struck 84 times statewide.)
One OCA member knowing all too well about work zone crashes is Sunesis Construction Company. At February’s ODOT-OCA Conaway Conference, the West Chester-based contractor was honored for its partnering efforts on an Interstate 75 project in Cincinnati (see related article, page 20). It was during the project’s Q&A that it was learned that 60 work zone crashes occurred in the course of the three-year project that Sunesis was working.
That crash total increased to 61 – and unfortunately a fatality – when a motorist was killed early Easter morning while driving at a high speed through the empty work zone. Sunesis Senior Project Manager Bill Pond said most of the work zone crashes on the I-75 project, including the one fatality, were primarily due to speed and distracted driving. “People don’t slow down, and people are constantly distracted. And we saw it.”
A question in the Work Zone Awareness Survey referencing motorists’ habits in the past year saw an increase in:
- Distracted Driving………………………………………………………………………..84%
- Speeding…………………………………………………………………………………………78%
- Impaired Driving…………………………………………………………………………..65%
- Impatience……………………………………………………………………………………..59%
- Increased traffic……………………………………………………………………………44%
- Other………………………………………………………………………………………………..6%
Pond, a 16-year industry veteran, said that while Sunesis was relatively new to working on highly traveled interstates like this portion of I-75, “our guys got a taste of it real quick.”
As a company, Pond said Sunesis ensured all traffic controls, devices, standards and traffic management plans were followed. “We took a lot of time and were diligent in making sure that everything was in place so that our guys and our subs were protected as much as we possibly could be.” Precautions taken above and beyond the project plans were working at night when traffic volumes were significantly reduced and eliminating access points to the work zone. “We tried to come up with ways to access areas where you didn’t have to get in or out of them by the interstate,” Pond said. “So, you would access from an auxiliary road adjacent the interstate – or we cut in access roads from adjacent properties – so you could access those areas without having to slow down on the interstate to get in or accelerate quickly in a short distance to get out on live traffic.”
With the goal of making work zones safer to travel and work, the AGC/HCSS survey asked contractors what they believe are the best deterrents to reduce crashes, injuries and fatalities. According to respondents, those work zone measures included:
- Automatic ticketing for speed violations………………………………..54%
- Greater police presence ……………………………………………………………80%
- Highway cameras……………………………………. 52%
- Tougher laws, fines, legal penalties…….. 51%
- Stricter enforcement of existing laws for moving violations………………………………… 70%
- Stricter laws against cell phone usage/distracted driving……………………………….. 66%
- Closing roads and detouring traffic…… 59%
- Better/more frequent safety training for workers……….28%
- Require study unit on driving near work zones in Driver’s Education……………………………………………………………………………46%
- No changes needed………………………………………………………………1%
- Other………………………………………………………………………………………..9%
OCA Labor Relations & Safety Director Dave Coniglio, who agrees that distracted driving is much worse today, was surprised by the question’s findings about the use of work zone cameras. “I was shocked to see that 52% of respondents believe speed cameras will deter speeding. I would not have thought the percentage to be that high. So, it was a very pleasant surprise.”
AGC is hoping another year of Work Zone Awareness Survey results is a continuing reminder to officials of the dangers of driving and working in work zones. “We’re partnering with our chapters (which OCA is one) and using this data to go to state officials, whether it is legislators or the highway patrol, to really make the case: ‘This is why we should be doing more,'” Turmail said.
According to Turmail, these efforts have resulted in stronger state legislation for driving in work zones – from use of speed cameras and stronger enforcement, to helping mandate work zone curriculum in driver’s education classes. AGC is also advocating at the federal level for better collection of work zone accident data to help in future studies and advocacy efforts.
In Ohio, where records on the Ohio State Patrol Work Zone Dashboard show that since 2020 there have been more than 23,600 crashes and 105 fatalities in Ohio work zones, Coniglio said ODOT is working to collect speed data in construction zones. “We are hoping this will give usable data to help support the use of speed cameras in work zones.” He added that OCA was also instrumental in pushing state legislation in 2024 to have more curriculum on driving in construction zones for new drivers.
While contractors appreciate efforts to make working and driving in work zones safer, Pond believes it comes down to enforcement. “If you can slow people down, I think you can definitely reduce accidents,” he said. “But you have to enforce it. If you can’t, people are just going to continue to go quickly through these areas.”
Results of the AGC/HCSS 2025 Work Zone Awareness Survey can be found at www.agc.org/2025-agc-hcss-highway-workzone-safety-survey. The Ohio Work Zone Safety Dashboard can be accessed at https://statepatrol.ohio.gov›oshp› ostatsdashboards.
Navigating Roadway Work Zones
Work zone incidences are even more dangerous for the traveling public. According to AGC, work zone crashes are nearly twice as likely to result in fatalities to drivers or passengers (24%) than to construction workers (13%).
Here are seven tips from the Federal Highway Administration on how to safely drive in a roadway work zone:
- Plan ahead
- Put down your phone
- Reduce your speed
- Look out for workers
- Be aware of pedestrians & bicyclists
- Give space to large vehicles
- Stay alert