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Signs of Change: ODOT Kicks
Off 2007 Construction Season
Department Focuses on Partnerships and Safety
COLUMBUS – The ‘Signs of Change’ are going up across Ohio, as ODOT
today officially kicks off the 2007 Construction Season stretching
across 750 work zones statewide over the next eight months.
“This year’s construction program continues ODOT’s tradition of
excellence in providing one of the best-maintained and safest highway
systems Ohio’s tax dollars can provide,” said ODOT Director James G.
Beasley, P.E/P.S. “We are also working every day to build the best,
most reliable partnership possible with our local governments and
communities across the state.”
In conjunction with National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week,
Director Beasley joined with the Federal Highway Administration, local
officials and labor leaders for a ceremonial statewide event in Akron
along Interstate 77 – one of the major corridors under construction
this season.
This year’s work includes more than 100 highway projects and close
to 475 resurfacing and maintenance projects, all aimed at improving
Ohio’s interstate system and maintaining existing infrastructure.
Several major multi-year improvement projects will also wrap up
construction this season, including Interstate 71 between Columbus and
Cleveland, Interstate 77 between Canton and Akron, U.S. Route 30 in
Hancock and Wyandot counties and the Interstate 280 Veterans’ Glass
City Skyway Bridge over the Maumee River in Toledo.
Safety is a critical component to the construction season. In 2006,
there were 19 fatalities and 2,101 injuries in Ohio work zones. On
average nationally, there is one work zone fatality every seven hours.
As part of National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week, motorists are
reminded to slow down and pay attention to all signs when traveling
through construction areas. ODOT strongly encourages motorists to plan
ahead. A 2007 Interstate Construction Brochure can now be found at
local ODOT District Offices.
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