The New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT) asked drivers to slow down and pay attention while driving through highway work zones as it launches National Work Zone Awareness Week, KOB 4 reported.
Following an increase in funding from the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT), the NMDOT launched a campaign reminding drivers to stay alert and focused, as there will be an increase of workers on the road.
The goal of the week, which is April 11 to 15 this year, is to utilize social media to help spread the message, according to NMDOT spokesperson Marisa Maez.
"I tell you what, I've been out there a couple of times next to these guys, it's terrifying, it really is, especially if you're on I-25, I-40, or I-10, any of these where the speed limit can be 75; you know some people are going 80, sometimes 85, and they're flying past you," Maez said.
An NMDOT transportation worker, 58-year-old Mittie Runyan, was killed last year in a work zone while her crew was trying to place road markers.
"A big, large truck came through and wasn't paying attention and didn't move over and slammed into her from the back of her vehicle and she was killed," Maez said.
The Federal Highway Administration (FHA) reported an increase of 11% in road worker fatalities in construction zones from 2019 to 2020; there were 857 fatalities in 2020, KOB 4 reported.