Construction zone safety reminder for North Dakotans: slow down

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) - There is a good chance you’ve experienced a delay due to road construction, either in town or on the interstate.

The summer season and construction projects go hand in hand in North Dakota, and unfortunately, patience in construction zones doesn’t always tag along. One construction supervisor recalls a close encounter with a small rock, and a car going too fast in a construction zone.

“And they picked up a rock with their tire and flung it right at me and hit me right in the back. Now, if I had been turned around and that rock would have been a bit higher or something, it would have smacked me right in the face and there could have been a lot more damage,” said Cory Swingen with Swingen Construction.

Construction companies are required to have traffic control supervisors on-site, and they are responsible for the placement of the sticks and barrels in construction zones.

“We have to maintain those cones and barrels that you see, and that’s 24 hours a day,” said Jason Odegard with Swingen Construction.

Driving just five miles an hour over the posted speed limit in interstate construction zones can end with tragic consequences. Construction workers add they’ve seen cars drive through marked zones and into freshly poured concrete, and even into an asphalt paving machine.

Construction companies will often hire out the responsibility of placing road cones because it is that important. Swingen Construction adds their workers are trying to concentrate on their work, and drivers abiding by the speed limit will help them complete their work and move the project along.

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