According to the National Security Council, the majority of people who die in construction zones are the drivers of motor vehicles. The causes of these deaths include rear-end crashes and sideswipe crashes.
Pedestrians, including workers, represent around 17 percent of those killed by construction zone accidents, while passengers in motor vehicles represent around 16 percent of deaths.
The West Virginia Division of Highways reported that there 800 crashes in the state’s work zones in 2022. Those accidents killed eight people and injured 276.
While motor vehicle crashes are the most common accidents in work zones, road construction also poses other hazards. Other common injuries in work zones, both fatal and non-fatal, include:
Making contact with, being struck by, or getting caught in dangerous equipment
Exposure to hazardous contaminants