Drive Safely in Work Zones

An adult in high visibility construction clothing looks over at a young child as they each sit behind a wheel of a construction vehicle. Text on the image reads, "Slow down. Pay attention. Be patient. Driving safely through work zones protects workers, you and your passengers."

June, July and August are Washington’s deadliest consecutive 90 days for traffic fatalities. Since 2018, more than 1,500 people have lost their lives in collisions during the summer months, and many more have been injured. This is especially concerning for local road agencies, as it overlaps with the summer construction season when workers are on and alongside roads, completing critical construction, maintenance and repair work. Much of this work must be done during long periods of warm, dry weather. 

Clark County ranks fourth for counties with the most work zone collisions in Washington, with about 80 recorded incidents each year. The leading causes are distracted driving, speeding, and actions of frustrated drivers. 

It’s not a matter of “if” drivers will encounter work zones this summer, but when and where. Drivers should allow extra time to reach their destinations, check traffic conditions along their route before heading out, and focus solely on driving when behind the wheel. Work zone safety starts with every driver. 

Graphic showing a person holding a "Road Work Ahead" sign next to a blacktop roadway with dashed orange center line. Text on the graphic reads "Lives are on the line. Drive safety in work zones. Slow down. Pay attention. Be patient."
Slow down. 
  • Posted speeds are set based on the maximum safe speed for a road when considering factors like intersections, curves, traffic volumes, sight distance, incline, and traffic volume. Driving faster than the posted speed greatly increases your risk of crashing. 
  • Driving slowly through work zones gives you time to react to moving equipment, changing conditions and sudden stops. 
Pay attention. 
  • If you read a text while driving at just 35 mph for even six seconds, you'll travel the length of a football field without your eyes on the road. A lot can happen in that time - vehicles pulling out of driveways, traffic stopping suddenly for something in the road, or a child running out into the road after a ball. You may pass a worker doing their job in the roadway, meaning drifting even inches out of your lane could have disastrous consequences. One text isn't worth the risk.
  • Think you can pay attention to your phone AND the road? Think again. A driver using their cell phone while traveling through a Clark County road work zone in the summer of 2025 struck a worker with their vehicle. The worker was hospitalized. 
Be patient. 
  • Check your route before you go. Popular mapping applications are good choices because they show slowdowns and delays in real-time. Many local road agencies, including Clark County Public Works, now submit road construction information directly to the three most popular consumer mapping applications (Google Maps, Apple Maps and Waze). 
    • Not all construction traffic is submitted to consumer mapping applications. You may encounter incident response or moving work zones as road agencies respond to collisions, reports of debris in roadways, etc. Always drive slowly and cautiously near workers in the roadway. 
  • Expect delays, leave early, or take an alternate route. Being on time for a meeting or an appointment isn’t worth risking someone’s life.
  • Our workers are out there not to make you late; they’re out there to fix the road issues you’ve reported and to make the drive better for you. Be kind to workers. 

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Slow down. Pay attention. Be patient.

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Dangerous driving in road construction work zones has become a troubling trend in Clark County.

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This behavior puts workers, drivers, passengers, pedestrians and cyclists at risk.

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So it's not a matter of if you encounter traffic control in a work zone, it's a matter of when you encounter traffic control in a work zone.

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So as we're ramping up construction efforts, we've seen a lot of drivers driving dangerously through our work zones.

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Summer is road construction season.

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Crews and equipment in work zones are sometimes within inches of passing vehicles.

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In 2025, there were 1,557 work zone collisions in Washington State.

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We asked drivers to be slow as they enter a traffic control work zone. That allows the worker to be safe.

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It allows the drivers to maneuver around objects and pay attention to their surroundings.

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To avoid work zones, take a moment to plan your commute with a map app, such as Google or Apple, to find traffic delays, alternate routes and road closures.

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Plan extra time for your commute and be patient when you encounter delays.

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We recently had an incident with a truck driver who tried driving through a road closure.

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Our inspector stopped them, told them that they needed to back up and drive around the detour. The truck driver got very upset.

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He actually got out of his vehicle and assaulted our inspector.

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The top three causes of work zone crashes is following too close, speeding and distracted driving. On the day of the incident.

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I arrived on site as normal, making sure the contractors had traffic control set in place. There was a distracted driver, on the phone.

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Who, as result, hit the worker saw cutting in the road head on.

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That worker was drug about 20ft, was taken out to the hospital and was out of work for several months.

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Not only driving and using electronic device dangerous, it's against the law in Washington.

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While summer may be the busiest season for road construction, remember the Public Works crews are out 24/7 365 days

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a year responding to emergencies, repairs and routine maintenance to keep Clark County roads open and safe.

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Drive slowly through the work zone so that they can give everybody a little bit extra space and a little bit of time to react.

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Remember to slow down, pay attention and be patient.

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For more information on driving through work zones safely, visit Clark County Public Works at www.clark.wa.gov/public-works/drive-safely-work-zones.