The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) is beginning work on Interstate 94 for a major resurfacing and shoulder widening project that is expected to take two years. In turn, motorists will experience fewer open lanes, and speed-limit signs in order to protect the workers.
The electronic signs, known as speed wizards, display the speed limit and the drivers speed. When the driver is going too fast, the sign flashes to warn them. This is one of the newest pieces of technology that MnDOT is utilizing to keep work zones safe and encourage motorists to drive the speed limit.
"We are trying to combat speeds," said Michelle Moser, a MnDOT work zone engineer. "It's one of our top priorities. When something is flashing at you going more than 10 mph over, that does tend to slow down the majority of drivers."
As we begin the National Work Zone Awareness Week, safety first is the message MnDOT is trying to get across. But, these signs also help the drivers.
With static signs, construction-zone speed limits are the law 24 hours a day, even when workers are not present. With the wizards, speed limits can be set to slower speeds during the day and adjusted upward at other times, such as when workers are gone or the work is on pause — cases where drivers often don't see the need to obey.
"We can have various speed limits in work zones and where work is happening," Moser said.
Another bonus comes in that the data the devices collect will be integrated into the state's 511 road information system and pushed out in real time to navigation apps such as Waze and Google.
Drivers will know if the right or left lane is closed before arriving at the work zone. They also will know where trucks are entering the roadway and how much time it could take to get through, Moser said.
"The traveling public will notice more accurate information on their navigation systems, and we are proud of that," she said.
As work zones get smarter, drivers need to do the same. From 2019 to 2021, there were 7,823 work zone crashes in the state, leading to 92 serious injuries and 28 deaths, according to MnDOT.
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Source: Startribune.com
