National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) is an event that takes place across the United States, with partnerships between state departments of transportation (DOT), national road safety organizations, government agencies, private companies and individuals.

With our mild winter, orange cones and work zones have been in place all season. Now with spring in the air, road work will ramp up and more crews will mobilize to fix our roads and bridges.

The Michigan Department of Transportation’s (MDOT) 2024 NWZAW kick-off event is at 11 a.m. on Monday, April 15, at Dow Diamond in Midland. The event will host a variety of speakers and will honor the workers, motorists and families of those killed in work zones this past year.

This year’s theme is “Work Zones are temporary. Actions behind the wheel can last forever.” For more information, check out the NWZAW website.

NWZAW runs April 15-19 and aims to educate road users and workers about the importance of work zone safety and encourages safe driving and using extra caution in work zones. MDOT’s goal is zero road fatalities and serious injuries. By slowing down, obeying signs, minimizing distractions, and working safely, we can ensure that drivers, passengers and workers make it home to their loved ones every day.

Go orange on Wednesday, April 17. To create awareness and show your support for each work zone crew, wear orange that day. We can all make it home safely if we play our part and work together, so “Go Orange” at home or in the field and share a photo on social media of you or your team wearing orange using hashtags #Orange4Safety, #GoOrangeDay and #NWZAW.

In Michigan in 2023, preliminary work zone crash statistics show there were:

– 7,237 work zone crashes

– 17 fatal work zone crashes

– 20 work zone fatalities where two were road workers

– 1,896 work zone injuries where 108 involved serious injuries