Transportation Secretary Jimmy Wriston urges work zone safety awareness from motorists

BEAVER, WV (LOOTPRESS) – West Virginia motorists have been urged to practice work zone safety awareness in the wake of several instances of roadway fatalities affecting WVDOH employees this year alone.

LOOTPRESS caught up with West Virginia Transportation Secretary, Jimmy Wriston on Thursday during a groundbreaking ceremony for the Beckley Z-Way project . Wriston implored drivers statewide to take measures to ensure that highway workers are protected from injury and death on the job. Specifically, the Transporation Secretary pointed to multi-tasking on the road and distracted driving as leading causes of motor vehicle accidents.

“Almost all crashes that you see in work zones and on the highway in general are due to speeding and distracted driving. So, we’ve got to start communicating with each other. We’ve got to make better decisions when we operate our vehicles on roads,” said Wriston. “We’ll get the roads in the condition they need to be in. We’ll get them in the condition that the people deserve, and we’ll give you a world class infrastructure system in West Virginia… [But] safety in our work zones has got to be everybody’s number one priority. Our workers have got to feel protected.”

Multiple West Virginia Division of Highways employees have lost their lives just in 2024 as a result of roadway incidents. A March 2024 incident led to the death of WVDOH employee Jordan Swiger after the worker was struck by a vehicle being operated by an impaired driver. Wriston remarked that ensuring the safety of roadway workers will contribute to prosperity for all in the Mountain State.

“We need to give the people exactly what they need and deserve. But they’ve got to do their part, and that means make good decisions when they turn that key. If they’ll make good decisions, we’ll all prosper. Because we’ve got to use our West Virginia values and look out for each other; make sure that everybody gets to go home safe.”