State transportation officials are reminding drivers to use extra caution in work zones along Ohio highways and are introducing a new piece of equipment designed to improve safety.
Ohio Department of Transportation officials are marking National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week. They said Monday that the most recent figures show Ohio deaths in highway construction zones because of vehicle crashes doubled from eight in 2009 to 16 in 2011.
ODOT is starting to use a variable speed limit trailer that can be programmed to display a safer, slower speed on stretches of roads where construction workers are present. The devices will be used this year at 10 construction project sites across Ohio.
The state says there were 56,945 vehicle crashes in Ohio work zones from 2003 to 2012.