EVERETT – They’re working to make the roads safer, the surface smoother and allow traffic to flow more easily.
While they’re at work, they want drivers to slow down.
All over Snohomish County, orange cones and concrete barriers are signs of the millions of dollars in road projects under way, including an estimated $156 million on 98 state projects being constructed in Snohomish County this summer.
There also are a number of county and city projects under way.
Hundreds of people wearing hard hats and bright orange vests take on the dangerous work alongside traffic moving at 60 mph or more.
With the return of warmer weather, expect to see even more roadwork on I-5, Highway 9, Highway 99 and many of the other main highways and roads in Snohomish County.
And expect to see Washington State Patrol troopers helping to make sure road workers and drivers stay out of danger.
On Tuesday, state troopers began special patrols in construction zones where traffic fines can be doubled, said Kirk Rudeen, a patrol spokesman.
“Lanes narrow, so there’s little room for error. We want to keep it under control,” he said.
To keep construction workers – and themselves – safe, drivers must slow down and prepare for sudden changes on the road, said Travis Phelps, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation.
“Construction zones require a different type of driving to get drivers through them safety,” Phelps said. “Pay attention, slow down, read signs, watch other traffic. It’s not a time to race through to get somewhere. Things can sneak up on you in a construction zone.”
In the past five years, 41 people have died in construction zones statewide, Rudeen said. Not all were all workers. Speed was by far the biggest contributing factor in the accidents, he said.
In 2005, 96 collisions were reported in state Department of Transportation work zones in Snohomish County, Phelps said. There were 892 work zone collisions in the county between 2000 and 2005, he said.
One tool used to encourage drivers to keep speeds down is a state law that gives the State Patrol the discretion to double fines in construction zones, Rudeen said.
On Tuesday and continuing today, troopers plan to give drivers a break and not slap on the doubled fine.
On I-5 north near the Broadway exit, Rudeen on Tuesday morning pulled over one driver who was caught by a laser gun driving 70 mph in a 60-mph zone. He told her to take it easy, slow down, or face the increased penalty.
“Today, we’re trying to educate people, but normally, instead of a $91 fine, it would be $182,” he said. “You start doing the math – doubling – and you can see where it starts getting spendy.”
A team of motorcycle troopers do the bulk of the work in construction zones because they more easily can work in tight areas, Rudeen said.
On Tuesday morning, troopers wrote 26 tickets in an hour on I-5 in Everett, he said. The top speed stopped was 77 mph. That driver got a $153 ticket. Beginning tomorrow, it could easily be $306.
“We’re serious about strict enforcement in these areas,” Rudeen said.
Traffic fines in construction zones can be doubled. Police and the state Department of Transportation are urging drivers to slow down for construction workers.
Here are some traffic fines and the doubled fine in construction zones:
1-5 mph over: $71, jumps to $142
6-10 mph over: $91, jumps to $182
11-15 mph over: $122, jumps to $244
16-20 mph over: $153, jumps to $306
21-25 mph over: $183, jumps to $366
26-30 mph over: $224, jumps to $448
Drive faster than that, and you can be cited for second-degree negligent driving or reckless endangerment, a criminal offense.
Reporter Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437 or jholtz@heraldnet.com.
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