Wisconsin DOT urges safe driving after 8 people killed in work zone accidents last year

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- "You just kinda learn to keep your head on a swivel, you're always looking out around you," said Samuel Martinez, construction leader with Spann & Associates. 

In Milwaukee, that road construction crew leader was making a point about driver safety in work zones. 

The Department of Transportation and Milwaukee's Department of Public Works held a press conference Thursday, Sept. 7, highlighting the importance of work zone safety. 

They displayed eight black-trimmed construction cones, representing the eight people killed in work zone accidents last year. 

"We know that every 5-10-minute or 30-minute delay related to a construction project, related to a work zone, is frustrating," said Jerrel Kruschke, Milwaukee DPW commissioner. "It slows people down from getting to their destinations. But I want everyone to remember those five, 10 minutes, or even 30 minutes of delay in their workday or their personal lives, can save a life."

There are hundreds of active construction projects on roads across the state, and the DOT says more than 2,400 crashes happen every year, putting both workers and drivers at risk.